tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57527052215340948022024-03-12T16:33:42.768-07:00D-Minus OneYeah, it's mostly Flames of WarAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01566457583865121822noreply@blogger.comBlogger70125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5752705221534094802.post-4993347672457540132014-07-16T18:50:00.001-07:002014-07-16T18:50:45.013-07:00Easy Hills<div><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">Hey everyone, I haven't had much time for lengthy blog articles, so I have a feeling that most of my posts will now be made through the iPhone blogger app. Today I just wanted to share my experience making hills.</span></div><div><br></div><div>The hills in my local gaming group always seemed too small in terms of both height and area footprint. This led to "discussions" about whether the hills blocked lines of sight to larger vehicles, and it made the hills easy to bypass, to the point where they really had no impact on the game. I wanted to make some hills to change that. </div><div><br></div><div>I started by shaping 2-inch pink insulation foam. The material I had on hand was left over from the table-topper I made. </div><div><br></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwmcO03yNJQqr8Q50q7MgGiiWlPt65MPo1A2zpWY2ubLvVRSx4crG-sEu7R_jJk-R4pigwgH6TqHvQv7DoFgFWG4hvyivlaCo9lkK06Z7L6L9OoeFwtUu9fGRA-oRxmjYx1phRpnFsTmQ3/s640/blogger-image-1887691040.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwmcO03yNJQqr8Q50q7MgGiiWlPt65MPo1A2zpWY2ubLvVRSx4crG-sEu7R_jJk-R4pigwgH6TqHvQv7DoFgFWG4hvyivlaCo9lkK06Z7L6L9OoeFwtUu9fGRA-oRxmjYx1phRpnFsTmQ3/s640/blogger-image-1887691040.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Next I would cover the hill in simple Elmer's Glue, then spread sand over it (this had to be done in sections on the larger hills). </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgnaqMVhtmdykQsxdRHhEaHznahI6c7keVC1_e41OBRNk1hPjZX2zA7foPeejaiL4UZq4GxbebCJ0dZWDtBtHVTLaLb4A1t7hlLEIgr1w2yZISoMZENNUSKrWMsQU5g0A6JFAa8v7sD8vz/s640/blogger-image-1922985506.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgnaqMVhtmdykQsxdRHhEaHznahI6c7keVC1_e41OBRNk1hPjZX2zA7foPeejaiL4UZq4GxbebCJ0dZWDtBtHVTLaLb4A1t7hlLEIgr1w2yZISoMZENNUSKrWMsQU5g0A6JFAa8v7sD8vz/s640/blogger-image-1922985506.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">After that I hit the hills with a flat brown spraypaint. Normally the spraypaint would eat away at the foam, but since the hills were covered by glue and sand this didn't really happen. Green flock (from an industrial size flock container) was then spread on certain areas. As a final step I sprayed a matte varnish over the entire thing.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTF-sjYsyREOwEHgeHjA_tqUje2QWFmmBTTjJ6uK1Ojxp0lysPrYiwSurVcLi19YB95AXbfNDfcH7zvPaYDQdI2aCaZWpxiPNczXopG20nsoUWeQVJVXpWRF-2_-oKu3LgnSBxCwyapSFR/s640/blogger-image-2057217866.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTF-sjYsyREOwEHgeHjA_tqUje2QWFmmBTTjJ6uK1Ojxp0lysPrYiwSurVcLi19YB95AXbfNDfcH7zvPaYDQdI2aCaZWpxiPNczXopG20nsoUWeQVJVXpWRF-2_-oKu3LgnSBxCwyapSFR/s640/blogger-image-2057217866.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-BS28LFOnoRGwOcYq_KeF9VJD0S8Ty9aXalO5aB64OOWHBJDGlT09qIf47io2X52msRNi5ykd4288_A26CEyYD6j-_PRoF1H5nM4L0j3jDE1vTod2SdbyVYqSq5DTOx_bCVG6kHPIJkZp/s640/blogger-image--2054777421.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-BS28LFOnoRGwOcYq_KeF9VJD0S8Ty9aXalO5aB64OOWHBJDGlT09qIf47io2X52msRNi5ykd4288_A26CEyYD6j-_PRoF1H5nM4L0j3jDE1vTod2SdbyVYqSq5DTOx_bCVG6kHPIJkZp/s640/blogger-image--2054777421.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">And there you have it. An easy way to add some great-looking terrain to your collection. Hills never go out of style either.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><br></div><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><br></div><br></div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01566457583865121822noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5752705221534094802.post-63960317118006275542014-06-15T07:55:00.003-07:002014-06-15T07:55:47.269-07:00Battle Report: US Tank Destroyers vs. PanzersRecently I got in a 1750 LW game with a very tough, probably cheesy list that I have been toying with. Although I like 1650 as the new official LW points level, there is a <a href="http://www.theconflictgt.com/" target="_blank">big tournament coming up in July</a> that will be using 1750. The last time I attended a tournament in this area the locals were heavy on both German forces with big cats and on allied lists with Naval Gunfire Support (NGFS) [<i>Editor's Note: Battlefront has now released changes to NGFS]</i>. Although I'd like to see NGFS banned there hasn't been any indication that it will at this tournament.<br />
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Therefore I have been fine-tuning a Tank Destroyer (TD) list. TD's are good for many reasons and can take down a variety of opponents, but are particularly effective against slow-moving heavies. Their security sections can also keep them safe from NGFS, since killing the security section doesn't automatically result in the death of the unit. My opponent regularly plays German panzers, and despite my warnings about what list I'd be playing with he brought a tank-heavy force. We rolled <b><i>Dust-Up</i></b> for the mission, which would be a good test for my list, as I'll explain below.<br />
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My List:<br />
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HQ - 2 M20 Scout Cars<br />
Patton<br />
4 Hellcats<br />
2 Hellcats<br />
Fully-upgraded Towed TD's (vet) aka the Toads<br />
Cav Recon<br />
3 Priests (trained)<br />
4 155's (vet)<br />
AOP<br />
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Total: 1745 (or 1750 with trucks for the 155's); 6 Platoons<br />
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This list excels when it gets everything on the table, and it should for most missions because of Patton's Always Attack special rule. However, this list can be overwhelmed in missions where I need to keep platoons off-table, which is why Dust-Up is a great practice mission. I'd never run Towed TD's before, but think they'd be great fun. Also I went with Hellcats over M10's for the simple reason that they're my favorite vehicle of WW2, even though in real life their crews <i>hated </i> them.<br />
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My opponent's panzer list, from Fortress Italy:<br />
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HQ - 2 Panzer IV's<br />
3 Panthers<br />
4 Panzer IV's<br />
4 Flammpanzers<br />
4 Mobelwagens (my favorite support option in the game!)<br />
2 8-rads<br />
3 Nebelwerfers<br />
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Total: 1750; 6 Platoons<br />
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A fairly standard German force, although those Flammpanzers could ruin my day in a hurry with all of my Top Armor 0 vehicles.<br />
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Because I had to split my force I decided to deploy my larger Hellcat platoon, the Toads, and the 155's. My opponent deployed the Panthers, Flammpanzers, and Nebelwerfers. I chose to deploy such that his reserves would have to cross open ground to get to the objectives (I deployed in the "bottom-right" of this picture):<br />
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If I were my opponent I would have left the Nebs off the board and put the 8-rads on, to try and block some TD ambushes. I ended up rolling to get the first turn, and I decided that I would play the long game with this one if possible. I held my Toads back in my deployment zone, and moved the security section for the Hellcats up to the tree-line to the left of my deployment zone.<br />
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My opponent then made what I think was his next critical mistake. Instead of advancing all of his armor away from my Hellcats, he sent his Flammpanzers off with his 1iC and 2iC toward the Hellcats (bogging one in the woods), and sent the Panthers in the other direction (if he had his 8-rads on the table, this might have been a good move because he could have screened the Flammpanzers).<br />
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On my next turn I popped the Hellcats, sooner than I wanted to but I really had no choice. My artillery strike on the Flammpanzers was ineffective, so I placed all hope in my TD's. I scored 3 hits, bailing 2 and killing 1 despite going straight to firepower checks. However, because the platoon had one dead tank and none operable he was forced to take a morale check, which he failed (<i>Editor's Note: we should have re-rolled those bailed results because they were flame tanks, no fuel trailers for these guys!)</i>.<br />
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His 1iC and 2iC tried to exact revenge on the Hellcats, but would only kill one over the course of their short lifespan. The rest of the game saw me pummeling his Panthers with artillery, even though the Panthers bagged two 155's.<br />
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Panthers bag a 155... </div>
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...but the others get revenge</div>
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Hellcats nab the 2iC </div>
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1iC gets a little revenge for his fallen comrades</div>
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Panthers whittle away at the 155's, but can they make enough of an impact? </div>
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1iC dies in a hail of gunfire</div>
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The fast reserves arrive </div>
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The undoing of the Panthers</div>
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We eventually called it when it was clear that he was never going to break through, nor could he prevent my fast-moving reserves from claiming the objectives. 6-1 to me.<br />
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In my opinion, my opponent made a big mistake in deploying the Nebelwerfers at the start of the game. He should have gone with the 8-rads so he could shut down my TD ambushes. That said, he ran a list that my TD's are specifically designed to beat. Next time he and I are going to run a game of Fighting Withdrawal against elite infantry, which I could see the TD's having a problem with.<br />
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For more Flames of War goodness be sure to follow me on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/piflamesofwar" target="_blank">@piflamesofwar</a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01566457583865121822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5752705221534094802.post-59346592565657258502014-05-29T19:41:00.002-07:002014-05-29T19:46:34.121-07:00Battle Report: HG Panzergrenadiers vs. Nisei<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">I have been hoping to play an Italy-themed game for weeks now, given the release of the stunning Italy campaign compilation books. These are gorgeous books, with excellently themed and balanced lists. The problem was that in my gaming group everyone has been absorbed in a non-themed campaign. Luckily one of my weekly opponents wanted a break from the campaign as well, and was down to try the Nisei infantry list. For my part I couldn't wait to give my HG Panzergrenadier list a chance to show what they're made of.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">This little jerk has taken up a lot of hobby time</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">We set up the table with what terrain was available. This was the second game to be hosted at my apartment, and so in preparation I completed two hills, made some woods bases, re-configured my green trees, and ordered the "Small Autumn Wood" tree set from Battlefront/GF9. We rolled randomly for mission and got <b><i>Pincer</i></b>, with my HG Panzergrens attacking. This is exactly the type of situation I wanted to test out with them! Little did I know that this would become one of my all-time favorite Flames of War games.</span><br />
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<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">We were each playing 1650 lists. My opponent generally likes to play Fearless Vet infantry, so he usually goes with American Airborne lists when playing as the Allies. However lately he has found the airborne lists to be a bit lacking, so I suggested he try the Nisei. I wrote him a list, and he was game to give it a try:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Nisei Infantry Company - Fearless Vet unless otherwise indicated</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">HQ - 1iC, 2iC, 2 bazookas </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Platoon (9 Rifle teams + command + bazooka) </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Platoon (as above) </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">I&R Jeep Recon - 3 .50cal jeeps</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Nisei AT Platoon - command, 2 57mm guns</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">3 Priests (CV) </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">4 105's (CV) </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Cav Recon (CV) </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">4 M10 Tank Destroyers (CV, AT 12 version)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">AOP </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Daniel Inouye, arguably the most famous of the Nisei</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Here are the Nisei special rules, for those who may not be aware:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">- Pass platoon morale checks on a 2+</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">- Pass company morale checks on a 2+</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">- Pass motivation checks to rally from being pinned down on a 2+</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">- If a Nisei platoon is forced to fall back by defensive fire, immediately roll a motivation test (on a normal fearless 3+). If that test is successful the platoon attempts to carry on with the assault; the enemy immediately shoots again in defensive fire; if the Nisei are not pinned down again then continue with the assault as normal, otherwise they're pinned by defensive fire </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">So the goal of that list is to attach out the HQ bazookas and form huge, elite infantry platoons that can take and hold any objective, especially when supported by the other options in the list.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="color: #222222;">And I was running the Herman Goering Panzergrenadiers, which are a Confident Veteran Infantry Company:</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="color: #222222;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="color: #222222;">HQ - 1iC and 2iC with kubelwagens, 3 Panzerschrecks</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">HG Panzergren Platoon - 7 MG stands, 4 trucks</span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">HG Panzergren Platoon - 7 MG stands, 4 trucks</span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">4 HMG's - with two trucks</span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">4 HG Panzer IV H's</span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">4 HG StuH's</span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">HG Light Recon - SdKfz 221, 2 SdKfz 222 (though I used the incorrect unit configuration in this game)</span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Nebelwerfers</span><br />
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">I lost my panzerschreck teams when I moved, but these will do for now!</span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">As per the HG special rules, every one of my platoons except the nebelwerfers re-rolls failed platoon morale checks, and the company as a whole is allowed to re-roll any failed company morale checks. So both of our armies are designed to stick it out to the bitter end!</span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">As indicated above the mission was <b><i>Pincer</i></b> and I would be attacking, which is what I wanted so I could test how useful the soft-skinned transports are for my troops. I combat-attached the panzerschrecks from the HQ and the HMG's, bringing one platoon up to 11 stands and the other up to 10. My opponent decided to deploy his 105's, Priests, one Nisei platoon, and the M10's (which were held in Ambush). He placed one objective in the back-center of his deployment area, and I placed mine in the front-center. Usually I would placed it off to one side, but his reserves will enter from the sides in Pincer and I wanted to make the objective difficult for him to reach.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">I deployed with the idea that my armor would drive for the center, lending support where needed (especially the StuHs). My recce would keep the tree lines clear of ambushing M10's, and the infantry platoons would envelop the Nisei platoon on the hill. Good plan? Alright, go team!</span><br />
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That's a very threatening tree line </div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">How is the terrain on this table? Enough variety in my collection?</span></div>
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The "left" side. Just added some blu-tac to one platoon's trucks to differentiate them </div>
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The "right" side </div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The first phase of my plan went off perfectly. The recce blocked the tree line from ambushes and both infantry platoons managed to move up in their trucks and then dismount during the stormtrooper step (I can sense you reaching for your rulebooks now and I'll save you the trip, it's allowed). On my opponent's first turn he dropped artillery on my StuHs and on my "left" flank infantry. The StuHs survived despite the Time on Target, but a couple infantry stands were sent packing.</span><br />
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Post-stormtrooper </div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">On turn two my "left" flank infantry were now in a position to assault the edge of the Nisei platoon (along with an observer). I dropped smoke and killed a couple of teams, and my opponent wisely pulled back (he would have pulled back anyway, but he also rolled a 1 for the motivation check). On the other side of the board combined fire from the Panzers and the StuHs killed two bazooka teams and a couple of infantry stands, while my HMG's moved into the second floor of a house and the rest of the platoon pushed forward for a turn 3 assault. His Nisei infantry failed to unpin, rolling 1's for both the first test and the 1iC re-roll. He dropped his M10 ambushed, but only managed to kill a single Panzer. His artillery got a couple more infantry stands, but my large platoons kept me from needing to test at this point. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Getting ready to assault</span></div>
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Smoke! Smoke for everyone! </div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">StuHs clear the village of bazookas</span></div>
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Clear the area! </div>
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The Nisei roll to counterattack </div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Stormtrooper into the buildings</span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Post-assault</span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Nisei roll to unpin...and the 1iC re-roll</span></div>
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Arty continues to nibble at the infantry </div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">M10's drop, and will bag a Panzer</span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">On the start of my turn 3 things were looking dire for the Nisei. Infantry platoons were advancing from two directions, and my armor was relatively unscathed. I was feeling pretty good, and moved both infantry platoons into assault positions that minimized defensive fire. My smoke barrage failed to range in, but I went ahead anyway. My StuHs and Panzers also killed two of the M10's. My left infantry would face 7 defensive fire shots, and my right infantry would face 8 shots.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Getting ready to assault</span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">It was at this moment that disaster struck my army. The 8 defensive fire shots on my right flank not only stopped the assault (he hit 6 times on 8 shots needing 4+) but killed several teams, dropped that platoons below half, causing them to flee despite having the HG re-roll! On the other side my assault made it in, but once again I failed several infantry saves, and the platoon was now down to 4 teams! They at least stuck around, but were now ineffective. My opponent managed to pass his platoon morale check this time (he had failed 4/5 tests up to this point, despite needing 2+).</span><br />
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This assault makes it in, but not without casualties for the Germans </div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The right side infantry quits the field!</span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">On my opponent's turn 3 his got a reserve platoon and brought on the I&R platoon with their .50cals. My recce was sent packing and the remaining infantry were shredded, although a lone HMG stuck around. Both of my commanders were now dead, and next turn he would surely killed the HMG which would put me at half strength. I had one chance to salvage this game. I needed to kill the M10's and the I&R, then assault the infantry. If this happened I would be holding the objective.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Well, I completely whiffed on the M10's, and the StuHs and nebelwerfers only managed to kill one Jeep. Two panzers then died to the M10's, and it was clear that the game was now lost. Even worse, it was a 6-1!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Honestly, despite losing, this was the most fun I've had playing FoW in quite a while. I think the Italy lists are very well-balanced against each other, and the HG Panzergrens were a blast to play. There are so many die rolls that could be catastrophic because of unarmored transports, and while that'd be frustrating in a tournament setting it adds some great tension for friendly games. The battle itself was like something out of a movie: when all hope seemed lost for the Americans, when the end seemed near, that's the moment they found their courage (stopped rolling 1's for motivation) and started shooting (actually managed to hit my troops).</span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Some tactical lessons: </span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">- I should have kept the infantry together and let the Panzers go on the flanking run. This would have given me more infantry to hold the objective, concentrated the fire from the HMG's, and forced the M10's to deploy away from the objective. The StuHs were fine in the center, and are awesome! Their breakthrough guns decimated high-value targets. But the panzers should have made the enveloping movement.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">- Maybe I should have placed the objective off to one side, as opposed to the center. Although it makes it easier for his reserves to counterattack the objective, it forces his reserves to enter from a specific flank, which would allow me to better prepare for the defense of the objective.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">- I found the trucks to be high-risk high-reward. They can absolutely win games for infantry lists, but you have to devote resources to keep them safe. I'm lucky that both platoons stormtroopered out of their trucks. That said, the tactical flexibility of that <a href="http://dminusone.blogspot.com/2013/12/phase-craze-movement.html" target="_blank">extra movement</a> is well-worth the few extra points, and can really surprise an opponent.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">That's it for now, thanks for reading. For more Flames of War content and other goodness be sure to follow me on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/piflamesofwar" target="_blank">@PIflamesofwar</a> </span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01566457583865121822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5752705221534094802.post-41616293190678836082014-05-08T17:41:00.004-07:002014-05-08T17:46:25.093-07:00Rant: Unpainted Models and Proxying Etiquette Hi everyone, I know it's been a while since I posted on this little blog, which makes it all the more upsetting to me that what has finally motivated me to write is something that is a bit negative. I have still been playing as much as possible, which is a little tougher now that I have a puppy, but I don't feel like my hobby life has been suffering too much. What has affected the blog is something that I have found to be an ever-increasing problem in my club.<br />
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I started this blog mainly as a way to catalog and share battle reports. I love reading battle reports and seeing great pictures of models slugging it out on the tabletop. Lately, however, I haven't been able to provide anything like that to the community because of widespread problems with players not using models that make for good battle reports. So today I wanted to discuss my opinions on painting and proxying etiquette.<br />
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Here are three pictures of recent scenes/armies from battles that I had hoped to share with you guys:<br />
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Posting reports for those games would be a waste of my time. The pictures would be ugly and in no way contribute to an article that any of you should spend any time reading. Especially for the MW army at the top - there is no reason that you should be playing with multiple nationalities and not have a 10-vehicle army unpainted.<br />
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Generally speaking I am <i>very</i> permissive when it comes to proxying, especially these days when Battlefront is having continual supply problems. That said, I have my limit, and a few nights ago I reached it when my opponent was deploying his force and said "Hey, so these german infantry bases are actually American 57mm guns".....<br />
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No...just no.... And I know that the guy who played that army reads this blog every once in a while, so dude, please, I enjoy our games together, just get the shit you need to actually play the army. This isn't Warhammer Fantasy where guys put down empty movement trays and call it a giant. At recent LW tournament my tanks were advancing against what I thought were 5cmPak38 guns (AT 9), only to have my opponent inform me midway through the game that they were actually 7.5cmPak40's (AT 12)! His excuse: "hey, Pak40's can go on medium bases...."<br />
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Again, I understand that there is some acceptable proxying that has to be allowed given Battlefront's supply issues. Hell, at a recent MW tournament I had to use BA-6 armored cars as BA-64 armored cars. However, substituting infantry bases for gun teams in an entirely unpainted army? Not informing your opponent of a major difference in stat lines of a proxy? That's crossing a line, and I'm starting to become a little ornery when I have to play against stuff like that.<br />
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*sigh* rant over...comment below or start a conversation on Twitter with me <a href="https://twitter.com/piflamesofwar" target="_blank">@PIflamesofwar</a><br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01566457583865121822noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5752705221534094802.post-36379429428063025822014-03-06T08:22:00.000-08:002014-03-06T08:22:20.137-08:001485 Mid-War Batrep: Soviet Tanks vs. German PanzergrensContinuing with my dual goal of playing more Mid-War games while also using non-veteran lists when possible, I was happy to get a game in a few nights ago with a new army. My opponent and I are both gearing up for a MW tournament on March 16th, but I'm also trying a completely new army for me: the Soviets! Yes, I finally took the plunge and have started collecting a communist horde. I found that my motivation stemmed from the models, not competitiveness, which helped me clear that final motivational hurdle. I really don't have the urge to play Soviets in LW at this stage, but in MW they're so...so...funny... Just look at the KV-2:<br />
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We had a shortage of objective markers, so the Sturmtigers subbed-in</div>
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The list I was running was built around the goal of fielding the KV-2's, which narrows it down to either Motostrelkovy or Mixed Tankovy. And so, in the spirit of adventure, I took the Fearless Conscript Mixed Tankovy into my first battle fielding Soviets.<br />
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My list was what one might call "direct" -<br />
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10 Fearless Conscript (FC) T-34's (so far I only have five completely finished in the winter scheme)<br />
8 FC Stuarts (using my American model Stuarts, just FYI the Soviets use the M3A1 Stuart's stats)<br />
3 KV-2's<br />
3 BA-64's (slight proxying, get over it, it's not a tournament)<br />
Limited Shturmoviks<br />
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Mixed Tankovy use a platoon commander as the 1iC, so I gave that job to one of the T-34's. The air support is really my only tool against heavy armor, which of course is a concern. I'm hoping that the lower point levels will keep most of the big cats away.<br />
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My opponent's German Panzergrenadiers:<br />
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HQ - 1iC and 2iC with panzerknackers<br />
Platoon<br />
Platoon<br />
<b>3 7.5cm PaK97/38 guns (a hidden gem in the Eastern Front Axis lists, take notice!)</b><br />
2 CV Panthers<br />
4 Panzerwerfers with extra crew<br />
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My opponent is still pretty new to MW, and I counselled him that in the future he will want to try and get to 6 platoons, especially in missions that are half-on-half-off.<br />
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Right on que, we rolled "Encounter" for the mission, so we would both be placed in pretty uncomfortable circumstances.<br />
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I chose the near edge in the above picture. Like I said we needed the Sturmtigers to sub-in as objectives. I figured the woods along my left flank would help my advance.<br />
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KV-2's guard the right objective </div>
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T-34's take cover from the Panthers and Nebelwerfers</div>
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Unfortunately, I really can't comment on my deployment without spoiling the outcome of the battle. I <i>really</i> should have deployed my Stuarts instead of the KV-2's. My rationale at the time was that the KV-2's are slow, and if they came in at a bad spot for scattered reserves then they'd never get into the fight. However, their lack of speed also meant that they wouldn't end up having much effect on the main fight either.<br />
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Then again, I also don't know why my opponent deployed the Panzerwerfers as opposed to some infantry or the AT guns.<br />
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Panthers shift over and nail a T-34</div>
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T-34's move out, but two bog despite their wide tracks </div>
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Planes swoop in and hit the Panther with rockets, but he rolls a 6 to save! </div>
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One more T-34 is KO-ed by the Panthers, but he also failed firepower on another two of them </div>
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Meanwhile, the KV-2's have been slowly lumbering out</div>
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The planes make a second pass, this time ready to pounce on a failed stormtrooper roll! </div>
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T-34's move up, now having to contend with his reserves </div>
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I hit all three teams under the template and he rolls two 6's!!! Then I can only bail the other Panther!!!</div>
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The un-bailed Panther nails a KV-2...conscript is awful! </div>
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As an aside he made every reserve roll, so his army is now completely on the board. Not only that, but his AT guns showed up exactly where my T-34's were pressing.</div>
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KV-2's manage to kill a Panzerwerfer (all they had to do was hit, they're firepower 1+ bunker buster) </div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
But are then wiped out by the Panthers </div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
My Stuarts arrive too late to the battle and in the wrong position, the best they can do is kill this observer</div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
None bogged on the way in, three bog on the way out... </div>
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...and one is lit up by the Panthers </div>
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T-34's kill one AT gun and pin the rest </div>
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Then move into the assault</div>
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One German team is killed, the rest wisely pull back </div>
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The Panthers only bail two T-34's, and I feel lucky! Then the AT guns slaughter the rest. With that the game is over.</div>
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What can I say? I lost this game on deployment. Had the Stuarts been on the table then they could have been ravaging his Panzerwerfers, forcing my opponent to split the attention of his Panthers. Also, my opponent got <i>VERY</i> lucky on his armor saves against the Shturmovik (which is a beast! Rockets in MW are awesome). He very easily could have lost one if not both Panthers had any of his three (three!) 6's rolled up as anything less.</div>
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My opponent said that had I deployed the Stuarts then he would have possibly deployed an infantry platoon, but even then the lack of integral AT means that I can assault them easily. He really has to get his list to 6 platoons.</div>
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On the plus side I think I used the T-34's fairly well, as evidenced by the face that I kept 8 of them alive to try and make the final thrust to an objective. In the future I'll be using the KV-2's as deployment bait for enemy heavy armor, as people seem to be more scared of them than they should be.</div>
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Anyway, I had a lot of fun with the Soviets. I'm really going to enjoy bulking out the army for MW and even EW (trying to gaze into the future for Barbarossa, whenever that book gets released). </div>
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Thanks for reading, for more FoW content follow me on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/piflamesofwar" target="_blank">@piflamesofwar </a><br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01566457583865121822noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5752705221534094802.post-90018952827527102412014-02-20T09:04:00.000-08:002014-02-20T09:04:55.703-08:00Quick MW Batrep: Schwere Panzers vs. US ArmorOur next tournament at my FLGS will be 1485 points Mid-War, which most of us haven't had the chance to practice for. Generally we prefer LW at our shop, but Mid-War offers a chance to get back to basics. Frankly, I think the game is easiest to learn in MW because of the lack of special rules (that said, I love LW - I just think that MW is easier on beginners). So a buddy of mine accepted my challenge to a MW game, and brought a list that you'll see at every MW tournament: Schwere Panzers. This list will rarely win the overall prize, but there is always going to be the guy who just wants to bring his big cats to town.<br />
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We rolled randomly for mission and got Breakthrough, and I'd have to defend. This was going to be tough. I'm going to keep this report quick and let the pictures do the talking, so don't expect too much tactical analysis.<br />
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I have been working on some US lists for MW since my Germans still aren't ready, and the lower points levels really hamper the kinds of German lists I like to play. I came up with two US Tank lists and two Armored Rifle lists to choose from, but eventually let the dice decide. Here's what I was running:<br />
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HQ - 2 Stuarts<br />
4 Stuarts<br />
4 Shermans<br />
4 M10 Tank Destroyers<br />
Armored Mortars<br />
SP AA<br />
Tank Recon w/ two infantry stands<br />
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1485 points really hurts tank armies in MW. You simply can't get enough on the board to handle every situation. I went for three strong, hard-hitting platoons that can deal with a variety of situations, backed up by platoons that can help shelter them from harm (recon blocks ambushes, AA keeps the skies clear, mortars drop smoke). At 1675 I would have added Priests, but they just don't fit into the tank lists.<br />
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My opponent basically ran the only possible 1485 Schwere Panzer list:<br />
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HQ - Tiger (For the Fatherland, and the one that you pass all bog checks on a 2+)<br />
Tiger (RoF 3, Schnell)<br />
Tiger (Schnell)<br />
Grenadiers<br />
Nebelwerfers<br />
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The command Tiger is my "let's test to see if my airbrush is calibrated correctly" model</div>
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My list can handle one Tiger. Three is going to be a challenge. He decided to only put his Grenadiers in reserve. I could only deploy two platoons due to the Mobile Reserves rule, and went with the Shermans and the Stuarts.<br />
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My general plan was to eviscerate his infantry as they arrived from reserve, and somehow bring down the Nebs and one Tiger which would then force a company check...a pretty desperate plan.<br />
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Stuarts double-time over toward the objectives, but the 2iC hangs back for a sneaky plan</div>
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Shermans double-time to another patch of trees to keep the Tigers honest </div>
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Nebs range in, but do no damage </div>
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In the absence of my reserves the Tigers begin to press</div>
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Shermans double-time right back to where they started </div>
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Tigers are getting close </div>
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Reserves finally show up and I bring the TD's on </div>
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He also gets reserves, and my Stuarts move in for the kill</div>
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Shermans lend their MG fire to the effort</div>
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Stuarts assault, lose only one to the Tiger's slow-traversing gun, and decimate the infantry, who flee. Phase 1 complete</div>
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But reprisal is swift</div>
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TD's attempt to enact phase two of the plan </div>
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But can only bail the Tiger they shot at </div>
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Meanwhile, back in the German deployment zone, my 2iC runs amok!</div>
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Slowly he chews away at the Nebs</div>
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Well....shiiiiiiiiiiiiiittt </div>
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The Nebs would flee shortly after this photo was taken </div>
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Smoke blankets the area as I try to maneuver the Shermans to take lucky shots and the recce teams into an assault position in case I bail a tank</div>
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Miraculously I kill a Tiger! But it's the 1iC, which doesn't put him below half</div>
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The last two Tigers finish off the Shermans</div>
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Well, that was that. Nothing more to be said really. My army simply didn't have to tools to neutralize or kill three Tigers. Against one Tiger I can just drop smoke all game long, but defending against three just won't work out for this list. I think this game took maybe an hour including setup.</div>
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Had the TD's killed one Tiger I probably would have won the game, since the other parts of my plan worked perfectly (killing the infantry and the Nebs). My opponent said that if he had to do it over he would have put one of the Tigers in the flank attack along with the infantry, which I think would have been a good move.</div>
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As always, please follow me on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/piflamesofwar" target="_blank">@piflamesofwar</a> </div>
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01566457583865121822noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5752705221534094802.post-78573297227834377162014-02-14T07:37:00.002-08:002014-02-14T07:37:12.150-08:00February Late-War Tournament ReportRecently my FLGS, Brothers Grim Games and Hobbies, hosted a 1650 LW tournament, with no list restrictions. Having committed to trying Trained troops for a while I decided to run either US 7th Armored out of BG&G (a total cheese list) or Kampfgruppe Pieper, depending on whether we needed to balance Axis and Allied forces. Ultimately I ended up running the 7th Armored, and was soon to find out why many top players call it the best armored list in the game.<br />
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<img height="426" src="https://scontent-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn2/t1/1911791_689466881098268_1549982787_n.jpg" width="640" /><br />
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The tournament was our first in a few months, and I was a little nervous trying Trained troops, which I haven't had much success with in the past. Generally I also end up pushing Trained units too hard, which leads to their inevitable demise.<br />
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My army was, admittedly, a cheesy list. American Trained Tanks have an enormous advantage over other nations: the Jumbo. My list was as follows -<br />
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HQ - 1iC Jumbo, no 2iC<br />
Patton<br />
4 Shermans - Jumbo, 2 x E8, M4A3<br />
4 Shermans - Jumbo, 3 x M4A3 (late)<br />
4 Stuarts<br />
4 M10's<br />
Armored Mortars<br />
Cav Recon<br />
AOP<br />
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Although there aren't any artillery batteries for the AOP to take advantage of, it is still very useful for mitigating ambushes. Unfortunately, it never came into play during this tournament.<br />
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Before I get into the report I just want you to be aware that there are a ton of great pictures of the event that can be viewed by clicking <a href="https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=oa.433574663439600&type=1" target="_blank">here</a>.<br />
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The first mission was Cauldron, and I would be facing one of the store's better players and his SS-Totenkopf Panzergrenadiers. Unfortunately for him his army was not suited toward defending in this mission, and Patton's re-roll for reserves gave me an enormous advantage as the attacker. His only anti-tank units were his 3 Panzer IV's and 2 8.8's, of which only the 88's were on the table at the beginning.<br />
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Post-Stuart Assault</div>
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Stuarts don't care, Stuarts don't give a shit</div>
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Ultimately I was able to use the terrain to my advantage and pick off his AT assets one by one. My Stuarts were amazing in this game. They assaulted an entire infantry platoon and ran them off the table, and then in the next turn assaulted and ran off the 88's! There was simply nothing my opponent could do to counter my maneuverability. I broke his company but would have started my next turn holding an objective anyway. 6-1 to me.<br />
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Some action on another table</div>
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One of the shocking games of this round came on another table. One of our, ummm... more bellicose players had been playfully trash talking (we all trash talk) all morning about how he was going to roll us. And it looked like he was well on his way in Game 1, with his Brit infantry (supported by Crocs) attacking against a Hungarian artillery park. However his Brits were broken on turn 7 when he was below half and neither commander was on the table. Why was neither commander on the table? Because he was so focused on getting his Crocs into position that he forgot to bring on his reserves FOR 4 TURNS!!! His commanders were with the infantry platoons, which were in reserve, and thus his 3 platoons that started on the table were on their own. When two of them were destroyed, he lost. It was amazing...<br />
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Crocs and AVRE's vs. Hungarians in the desert... I'll let that sink in</div>
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Games two and three were played with a custom mission of my creation. Basically each player sets up objectives as they would in Encounter (each player places one in each deployment zone), but then the players use the Blind Deployment setup that the I-95 guys invented. Battle ends on or after Turn 6.<br />
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My game two was against the Hungarian player. Unfortunately I found out too late that his 6-pounder models were actually 7.5cm Pak40's...hmmmmm... Not having time to redirect my attack, and scared of being shredded by his artillery, we fought each other to a standstill. I killed two of his platoon, but he didn't get any of mine, for a 3-1 "draw" (there are no draws in FoW - counts as a loss). This game was a lesson in pulling mauled units off the line to preserve battle points. Both my Stuarts (another awesome game from them) and the Armored Mortars had been shredded, but I retreated to safe locations to preserve them.<br />
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If you don't kill all the Stuarts... </div>
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...then Stuarts gonna kill you!</div>
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Game 3 was against an American Airborne army, which was simply not prepared to deal with my force. The game really was a catastrophe for my opponent. My self-defense AA dice were hot! In the picture below you can see his air support with 3 planes swooping in on my tanks. I would get 5 self-defense AA shots; I hit three times and then passed all three firepower tests! His priority air only ever made it through once all game, and didn't do any damage.<br />
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I killed his TD security section in such a way as to prevent the TD's from deploying, and eventually ground the rest of his army into dust. The only thing that didn't go according to plan was that my TD's whiffed on all 8 of their shots (needing 4+), but it didn't even matter. 5-2 to me (I sacrificed the Stuarts in order to kill the TD's...a fair trade in my opinion).<br />
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At the end of the day this was enough to get me first place since nobody went 3-0. I really like this list, and I can see why Bill Wilcox runs it so much. The difference between my list and his is that he drops the TD's and Armored Mortars and adds two Priest batteries. Usually in our local meta there are more heavy tanks, hence why I wanted the TD's, but during this tournament the Priests would have been far more useful. I'll have to keep play-testing, but after I play a couple of games with my neglected KG Pieper.<br />
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Thanks for reading, again click <a href="https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=oa.433574663439600&type=1" target="_blank">here for more pictures</a>, and also please follow me on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/piflamesofwar" target="_blank">@piflamesofwar</a><br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01566457583865121822noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5752705221534094802.post-21288333678551751812014-02-05T12:56:00.000-08:002014-02-05T12:56:11.966-08:00Battle Report: US 7th Armored vs. Panzers to the MeuseI was finally able to play a game! For about three weeks the weather and other scheduling problems have wreaked havoc with my ability to get in some table time. For the next couple of months one of my gaming goals is to play more games with Trained units. Searching around on the intertubes I see a lot of the top players doing very well with Trained armies, and I have never been able to find success with them. My theory is that if I learn how to use them well then I'll eventually have more tools to work with because of the points savings.<br />
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And so I set out to try my luck with what is considered one of the top Trained lists in the game: US 7th Armored led by the big man himself, General Patton. Squaring off against me would be a tough opponent in the form of another auto-attack list: Panzers to the Meuse. We rolled randomly for mission and got Hasty Attack. then we had to roll-off for attacker, and I suddenly found myself on the defensive (gulp!). I was in for a tough fight.<br />
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The table. I would be defending the nearest long table edge</div>
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So already things were not going as planned. But hey, there are a lot of auto-attack lists out there right now, and I'm up for a challenge!</div>
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Let's look at the armies. My list was all Confident Trained (except Patton who is Fearless Veteran) - </div>
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HQ - Jumbo</div>
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Patton</div>
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4 Shermans - Jumbo, 2 x E8's, M4A3</div>
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4 Shermans - Jumbo, 3 x M4A3 (late)</div>
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4 Stuarts</div>
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Tank Destroyers - 4 M10's</div>
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Cav Recon</div>
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Armored Mortars</div>
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AOP</div>
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FYI the difference between this list and Bill Wilcox's famous list is that he has two Sherman platoons with E8's, no TD's, and two Priest batteries. I'm skeptical of Trained artillery and I suspect that in my local meta the TD's will be more useful.</div>
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My opponent's list was from Panzers to the Meuse, and he had to proxy some things so bear with me - </div>
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HQ - Panzer IV</div>
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3 Panzer IV's</div>
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3 Panthers</div>
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Aufklarungs with extra halftracks (5 Infantry teams not shown)</div>
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3 Wespes with OP Panzer IV (below the Aufklaurngs in the above picture)</div>
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3 Wirbelwinds (the turretless Panzer IV chassis in the picture)</div>
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2 Pumas (played by the black Marders)</div>
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After the game I convinced him that his Wirbelwinds should become Mobelwagens. Any readers of this blog or followers of my Twitter know that I think Mobelwagens are awesome!</div>
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As I said we were playing Hasty Attack, and he won the die-roll to attack. I decided to deploy the two Sherman platoons and the M10's, and placed the objective in my table zone right in the middle so I wouldn't have too much ground to cover. He deployed his Panthers, Panzer IV's, and Wespes, and he would get a Spearhead move with the Panthers.</div>
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TD's on the road, ready to make full use of Jeep mobility<br />
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Held the E8 platoon in immediate ambush, sprung them behind the woods in the center<br />
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The Wespes take up position<br />
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German armor weights one flank<br />
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And the Panthers roll out</div>
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I didn't take a picture of it, but he got his Aufklarungs on reserve on Turn 1 and double-timed them past his Wespes on my left flank.</div>
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Shermans move to counter, risking arty fire<br />
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TD's move out to try and flank the enemy armor<br />
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Disaster...</div>
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So, I moved the security section where there were no enemy troops, completely forgetting that he is still getting his reserves in. This was probably my stupidest mistake of the game, and I was punished when he got BOTH of his remaining reserves to arrive. Now he has his entire army pressing against my overmatched troops.</div>
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Aufklarungs keep up the pressure on the left flank</div>
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Arty commander spies tanks in the open. They range in but fail to harm anyone<br />
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The Security section evaporates, and the M10's pop out<br />
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The Panthers bag a Sherman despite needing 6's to hit, and they even bail a Jumbo despite me needing to roll a 1 on my save! (long range modifier bumps Jumbo armor to 13)</div>
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M10's decide that discretion is the better part of valor and back off, but one bogs<br />
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Jumbo fires smoke at the encroaching Panthers<br />
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E8's gamble by remaining under ranged-in mark for artillery to shoot at the Panzers. They score 3 hits, but only kill one (the other was double-bailed and passed motivation)</div>
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Situation at top of 3<br />
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Another disaster - 1 E8 falls to artillery, another falls to a long-range Panzer IV shot<br />
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Aufklarungs move up to threaten the bogged M10, but can't do anything this turn<br />
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I didn't get any reserves on Turn three, despite Patton's re-roll. Had I gotten my Stuarts in on this turn they could have done a lot of damage to the Aufklarungs</div>
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On my turn I make sure that he doesn't get any ideas about assaulting, and pack the area with defensive firing MG's. I also kill one infantry stand during that turn's shooting</div>
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At the bottom of 3<br />
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He lines up most of his force to take out the bogged M10, and yet they all fail!<br />
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Stuarts finally arrive on Turn 4, but fail two firepower checks and can only double-bail one Wespe, which sticks around<br />
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On a more successful note my M10 in the woods un-bogs and nails a Panzer IV, but once again he passes a motivation check and the remaining tank from that platoon stays around</div>
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Two hits on the Jumbo from the E8 platoon, I need 2's to bail, I roll two 1's...goodbye Jumbo!<br />
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The M10 in the woods predictably dies, but somewhat unpredictably its killer is the OP Panzer IV<br />
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Stuarts begin to ravage the Wespes, but only bail all three vehicles. Luckily that's enough to finally send the double-bailed one away. They followed up with an assault on the staff team, killing it. The platoon passed its morale check though<br />
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Also, this Sherman from the E8 platoon stuck around thanks to Patton, and had to move up to contest the objective. My recon arrived from reserve in the middle of the table, and so moved behind the woods in this picture, ready to feed teams onto the objective.</div>
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Situation at the contested objective at top of 6<br />
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His forces move over to press the Stuarts<br />
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OP Panzer IV bags <i>another</i> M10 despite the penalty for moving at RoF 1<br />
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The other two M10's get revenge!</div>
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Recce being fed into the meat grinder<br />
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Once again the jumbo can't bounce a Panther hit (that's my 1iC)<br />
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The Stuarts had moved behind a hill to shoot at the Pumas, but now were taking flank shots from the Wirbelwinds. Had these been Mobelwagens my Stuarts and M10's would have died long ago<br />
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M10's bag a Wirbelwind<br />
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The Jumbo in the distance had moved out to shoot the Wirbelwinds, and my opponent swings away from the objective to get a platoon kill</div>
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Stuarts and M10's finish off the Wirbelwinds<br />
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Again, while all of this is going on, I am just feeding recce teams into the meat grinder of the contested objective. The Aufklarungs had moved back to defend the attacker's objective.</div>
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Targeting the Stuarts<br />
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Pumas and the Panzer IV bail the other two living Stuarts, but they passed platoon morale<br />
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All three Stuarts remount, and they join the M10's in a final push<br />
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M10's line up their shots through the wreckage</div>
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The M10's hit the Panzer IV, but only bail and he passes platoon morale. The Stuarts don't fare any better against the Pumas, failing to kill one and failing to bail the other. Over the course of the game the Stuarts failed 7/8 firepower checks<br />
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The Pumas split their fire on the next turn, but the strategy works. Two Stuarts are killed and the platoon runs; one M10 is killed and the platoon runs. With that, we finally call it. 3-4 loss for the Americans.</div>
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There were a few things are learned from this game that will definitely help going forward:</div>
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1. Specifically with regard to this list: bunch up those Jumbos! It's much easier than one would assume for a good player to negate the Jumbo rules, mainly by <a href="http://dminusone.blogspot.com/2013/12/phase-craze-movement.html" target="_blank">careful movement</a> and pre-measuring with his troops.</div>
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2. For Trained units in general: leaving trained units isolated will spell their doom. You simply cannot rely on Trained units, even ones with good weapons and rules, to come out ahead in a gunfight against veteran units. Rather, you need to pair units together to create deadly combos. Usually this is hard to do with Veteran lists because you don't have enough units to pull-off multiple combos at once, but with Trained armies you have more units at your disposal.</div>
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3. Related to point #2: Allocate the appropriate resources to the job at hand. Let's look at what my M10's killed in this game - 1 Panzer IV, 2 Wirbelwinds...hardly the most pressing targets for a 310 point AT 13 super-unit. The Stuarts were used as intended, and despite my myriad errors in the game if they made even half of their firepower checks I still had a good chance at pulling out a win.</div>
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The only consolation from this game was that in a tournament setting, with a time limit, I would have won. But the fact is that I was out-played and made a couple of stupid mistakes that cost me. Luckily, I know I won't be making those mistakes again.</div>
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I'm going to play a few more games with this list, including a tournament this weekend (assuming we aren't snowed out) because I think this list has a lot of potential over the Priest batteries version. I may switch out the M10's for Hellcats, but probably not since the front armor 4 saved them several times. Really it all comes down to the general, and last night my mistakes really cost me.</div>
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As always, please follow me on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/piflamesofwar" target="_blank">@piflamesofwar</a> </div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01566457583865121822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5752705221534094802.post-63673724743169152492014-01-15T07:45:00.000-08:002014-01-15T07:45:10.040-08:00New Years ResolutionsHi everyone, hope your holiday season was fruitful. Now that we're back in the swing of things I thought I needed to show a little love to the blog. This year I want to make a few New Years Resolutions, a la the WWPD crew, to help focus my hobby goals for the year. It'll be interesting to look back in December and see where I end up, but no matter what I think this will be fun.<br />
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Recent gaming, battle was pretty anti-climactic so I won't be posting a full write-up</div>
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So, without further delay:<br />
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1. Build/paint/acquire an Early War adversary for my EW Deutsche Afrika Korps - My EW DAK doesn't see the table nearly as often as I'd like, and a lot of that has to do with my local crew not having EW armies. I came up with a relatively inexpensive but still effective British infantry list that'll hopefully fit the bill.<br />
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<img height="447" src="https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRGgcarkK5bhH9y8A7B2lr_rloGDgWsGy6Va1YQs-a1n4RaqnBMcQ" width="640" /><br />
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2. Finish my desert table - I just need some buildings/rubble to flesh out the village, and then maybe some more hills. I think I have developed a method for making convincing desert rubble, which will be the subject of a future blog post.<br />
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<img height="363" src="http://mw2.google.com/mw-panoramio/photos/medium/5739027.jpg" width="640" /><br />
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Yes, there are trees in Tunisia</div>
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<img height="425" src="http://thumbs.dreamstime.com/z/barren-land-tunisia-22601263.jpg" width="640" /></div>
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3. Build/paint/acquire a communist force - I would love to build a Soviet Rota Razvedki, but damn it's expensive. HOWEVER! If I'm looking for a communist horde then building a PAVN infantry force to play the adversary to my 'Nam Americans could be a great option.<br />
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<img height="404" src="http://withfriendship.com/images/i/44384/the-m551-sheridan-tank-was.jpg" width="640" /><br />
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4. Sell some of my stuff - I officially have to much stuff and too little cash, so I need to bite the bullet and sell stuff that I'm simply not using anymore (Sturmtigers - I'm looking at you!).<br />
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Gotta clean off that pigment, clean up the rust effects</div>
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5. Run at least 5 Ranger events - I'm one of the Ranger coordinators for my area, and have recently become the main one, so I need to step it up a little. Hopefully I can get to the other two stores outside of my FLGS and run a few demo games on a semi-consistent basis.<br />
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Although there won't be any mega-battles...I hate mega-battles</div>
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6. Attend at least one tournament outside of New York State - I'm really hoping to get to an HMGS event this year, but would settle for another event that simply featured a different group and a different meta than I'm used to.<br />
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That about does it! Of course there are other projects that I would love to take on but hopefully this list will allow me to focus my priorities and stick to a certain set of goals. Thanks for reading, and don't forget to follow me on Twitter @piflamesofwarAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01566457583865121822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5752705221534094802.post-4124409854257097742013-12-27T06:28:00.000-08:002013-12-27T06:28:21.078-08:00A Quick Note: NegativityHey guys, in the interest of spreading a little holiday cheer I just wanted to make an observation about something that really bothers me in any game environment, but really came to a head when I was running a recent tournament. The level of negativity that some gamers have toward the hobby really baffles me sometimes. Whether on forums or in actual games it's getting to the point where it's affecting who I choose to play with and which sites I choose to visit.<br />
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<img src="http://bulk2.destructoid.com/ul/152408-hhh.jpg" height="388" width="640" /><br />
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"What do you mean tanks can move through each other?!?!?!"</div>
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When I was running the tournament there were a few players who hadn't read the rulebook carefully, and so when their opponents would pull a legal move that seemed a little screwy, they'd whine to me and then complain about the rules when I came down on the opponent's side. This could have been avoided if they read the rulebook, but their attitude only made it worse.<br />
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A couple of weeks ago I was running a demo event at a local convention and I had one guy come over, trash the game based on Version 1 rules, and then just walk away as I tried to explain why his conception was wrong. But at least this was a complaint from someone who wasn't playing the game...<br />
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What really gets me going are the people who buy Flames of War product, play FoW with their buddies, attend tournaments, but then do nothing but trash the game. Whether on forums or at tournaments they will do nothing but complain to anyone who will pay attention to them, and will likely keep complaining even though nobody is listening.<br />
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<img src="http://data3.whicdn.com/images/57885572/28150_578550668856683_1627188223_n_large.jpg" height="529" width="640" /><br />
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I gave up on the Battlefront forums a long time ago, and am starting to see some of that malaise seep into the WWPD forums. There are many times where I'll look at who started a topic and then not even click on it, because I know that it's just going to be another diatribe on AOP's and why he's grumpy that a very specific list that he likes to play isn't running roughshod over every opponent (I'm thinking of one person in particular but it applies to many forum-ites).<br />
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For the life of me I can't understand why people will devote hundreds (or thousands) of dollars and hundreds (or thousands) of hours to something that they hate so much. And just because you might not like a game, don't walk over to two guys playing it just to trash the game. I don't much like 40k anymore, but I don't interrupt someone's game to criticize it.<br />
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<img height="448" 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" width="640" /><br />
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Don't trash on other people's games, and if you hate your game enough to the point that it's ruining your day then don't play it. Sell your stuff and move on with your life. For the rest of us, who like it when our toy tanks go "boom!", we will keep on playing and not get worked up over a bunch of toys.<br />
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<img src="http://cdn.cutestpaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Two-Litte-Dog-l.jpg" height="496" width="640" /><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
Here are two cute puppies to cleanse the palate</div>
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Stay safe during this holiday season.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01566457583865121822noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5752705221534094802.post-9778799097811359872013-12-20T12:12:00.000-08:002013-12-20T12:22:21.924-08:00Phase Craze: ShootingHaving explored the <a href="http://dminusone.blogspot.com/2013/11/phase-craze-intro-and-deployment.html" target="_blank">first</a> two <a href="http://dminusone.blogspot.com/2013/12/phase-craze-movement.html" target="_blank">phases</a> of any Flames of War game it is now time that we venture into the deadly phases, starting with Shooting. Granted, improper deployment and movement can be just as deadly to your toy soldiers as enemy fire, but neither of those phases involves rolling fistfuls of dice and dropping little smoke-and-flame markers where once-living tanks existed.<br />
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If you can't tell, I like the shooting phase, but I have only gotten a firm grasp on how to master the phase since I learned how to maximize an army's given firepower. I haven't mastered anything yet, but feel like I'm well on my way thanks to a few key developments in my play style. To many of you these pointers will seem obvious, but I hope that some of you will be able to use this advice in your own games.<br />
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<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHqslx_OO_FqTzE-dyKPZbF_FcRkhmQ7rA4rvyrC6HM_MjY8yFiHrUvN91ZSAOCJymJ0aID2l-NKm9K9ZRZGXzl4y6NsVZJ7l0TONp_7S1UwG8SipZ1lBZStuYblvT3JXs9NNdUAHsSFU/s640/french-tank-beaumont-belgium-may-1940-second-world-war-two-2-ww2-amazing-pictures-photos.jpg" height="417" width="640" /><br />
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Once again, you really have to read <a href="http://www.wwpd.net/2012/03/flames-of-war-statistics-101-pt-1.html" target="_blank">Eric Riha's great articles</a> on the math behind the game to truly understand the forces at play in the shooting phase. Only once you start understanding the true odds you have when rolling dice will your game develop to that next level.<br />
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For example, I've played against opponents who deploy their (Overlord - AT 12) Tank Destroyers over 16" away from my veteran Panzers (having been forced to do so because of my recon screen), then get upset when all they managed to accomplish was one tank killed, one bailed. But should they have been so surprised? Let's look at the numbers:<br />
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<img src="http://sonofwashington.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/Mathimage1.jpg" height="460" width="640" /><br />
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Well now it all makes sense!</div>
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Veteran tanks at long range: 5+ to hit on 8 shots. Front Armor 6, at long range it turns into 7, so now I bail on a 5 and save on a 6. Then my opponent has to roll firepower checks. There is little statistical chance that a TD platoon will be able to wipe out an entire Panzer platoon at long range, and yet my opponent was flabbergasted when my tanks wiped out the TD's on my next turn.<br />
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Now that we've explored this one basic example, let's dive into some of my principles of shooting:<br />
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<u>Roll as many dice to hit as possible</u>: There is a reason why your opponent with American Tanks always uses Stabilizers. Say you have a veteran target at long range. You can either move to get within 16" needing 4+, or fire twice at over 16" needing 5+. Since you have to halve your RoF if you move, your odds are the same to hit that target once per-die roll at short range or at long range. However! Since you're rolling double the number of dice at long range the odds are pretty good that you'll get more hits. Where you may run into trouble with this principle is when shooting at armored targets at long range, due to the added +1 to the armor that is caused by shooting at range.<br />
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<img src="http://www.missing-lynx.com/art_gallery/art_usa/sherman_m4a3e8_laurier.jpg" height="469" width="640" /><br />
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This Easy-8's ego is writing checks that its butt can't cash</div>
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<u>The more steps you need to succeed, the more likely you are to fail</u>: This is a long way of saying that direct fire is more reliable than artillery or aircraft. Now, this doesn't mean that artillery is useless, or that I don't utilize artillery. It just means that I take its unpredictability into account when I'm planning my turn. You have to roll to range in, then roll to hit (with penalties if you didn't range in on your first attempt), then your opponent rolls saves, then you have to roll firepower. That's a lot of dice being thrown, and with each step the likelihood of success decreases.<br />
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<img src="http://efour4ever.com/155_behind_770.jpg" height="493" width="640" /><br />
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Damnit guys! This is no time for tug-of-war!</div>
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<u>Concentrate Firepower</u>: Your opponents will expect to lose a couple of teams from their platoons on their way to the objectives. They won't expect to lose an entire platoon in one turn. In each game you should figure out which units are the biggest threats to your army, and devote as many resources as possible to knocking them out. Mobile armies will be able to do this more effectively than static armies, since they can move from threat to threat. I can't overstate this enough: don't spread out your fire, whittling away at a unit over there, then one over here, then one in the back; wipe out entire units before moving onto the next one.<br />
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<img src="http://static3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20130409031235/starwars/images/e/e7/AdmiralAck.png" height="510" width="640" /><br />
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"Concentrate all firepower on that -" blah blah blah, you know how it goes</div>
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Putting these three principles to practice obviously means that my movement phase provides the basis for my shooting phase. I'm looking to maximize my odds while limiting the consequences of my actions. I can minimize return fire in a variety of ways, but here are the three most common ways I can think of:<br />
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1. <u>Kill what you're shooting at</u> - concentrate your fire and eliminate the threat. If it's dead then it can't hurt you.<br />
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2. <u>Move into a position where the odds will favor you</u> - if I move veteran tanks into a hull-down position on a hill I may be sacrificing shots in the turn that I moved, but in the long term I'll be in a better position than the target in the open. US Tanks and German Tanks are very good at this, because US Tanks can still get two shots as they maneuver and because German tanks can just slip away with Stormtrooper.<br />
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<img src="http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/library/policy/army/accp/in0810/image2661.gif" height="498" width="640" /><br />
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If only it were this easy...</div>
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3. <u>Distract your opponent</u> - in a recent game (not a tournament one) my opponent was running a crazy list with three Tigers. The threat of my TD's forced him back to where they were basically playing guard duty on one of his objectives. Then I moved my TD's elsewhere, but kept a Cav Recon unit lurking nearby to pounce on the objective if the Tigers moved away. Thus I took one of my opponent's most powerful shooting units out of the game, without even firing a shot. The mere <i>threat</i> of my shooting forced him to retreat, and then to be held hostage by a 85-point unit.<br />
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This is really all I have to say about shooting without plagiarizing Eric Riha's articles. You need to concentrate fire from several units to make an appreciable impact in the game. It's not enough to whittle away at the enemy - you need to figure out the odds and then pour enough shots into them as possible. If you don't succeed in shooting an enemy to death you'll need to assault, and keep your eyes peeled after the holidays to read my article on why that's not the best idea...<br />
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<img src="http://cdn.mos.totalfilm.com/images/c/cliffhanger-1993--00.jpg" height="360" width="640" /><br />
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Get it? That last sentence was a cliffhanger</div>
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As always, follow me on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/piflamesofwar" target="_blank">@piflamesofwar </a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01566457583865121822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5752705221534094802.post-33762917157554529242013-12-11T08:44:00.000-08:002013-12-11T08:44:13.320-08:00Tournament Report from Dec. 8thRecently I had my first experienced as a Tournament Organizer, due to a last-minute family obligation on the part of our normal TO. I was a little disappointed since I had been hoping to play in the tournament, although as it turned out I was still able to throw some dice thanks to an odd number of participants. I'm just going to do a quick recap of each of my games, a summary of the winners podium, followed by a picture dump, and round out with a short list of things I'd like to try the next time I'm a TO.<br />
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We had thirteen players plus myself at this tournament, which for better or worse represents our shop's best showing in months. We hit this mark thanks to a few guys who drove down from Connecticut, and who braved the snow on the ride home (the problem isn't the snow really, it's the traffic getting back through NYC). We ended up with 6 Allied players and 8 Axis players, but one of those Axis was Hungarians so it was about as even as I could hope for. The tournament was 1650 Late War. As TO I allowed all missions except Cauldron and Surrounded.<br />
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I was running a German Panzer Company from the Meuse PDF consisting of 2 HQ Panzer IV's, two platoons of four Panzer IV's each, 3 Panzer IV/70's, two patrols of 2 Pumas each, and Mobelwagens (also a recovery vehicle).<br />
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<u>Game 1</u> - My first game was against someone who showed up a little late, after everyone else had already been paired-up. He was using the new Panzer Kampfgruppe from Desperate Measures, and had 2 HQ Panthers, two platoons of three Panthers each, an armored panzergrenadier platoon, and a large unit of Panzerwerfers, all of which was Confident Trained. The mission for Round 1 was Breakthrough.<br />
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We rolled for attacker, which ended up being me. My tanks were going to have trouble tackling his Panthers, so my goal was to destroy his weak supporting platoons and then hopefully kill one Panther platoon and forced a company check. If that didn't work then hopefully I'd distract him long enough for my Mobelwagens to arrive from reserve and capture the objectives. In the end I did both of those things. I forced a company morale check, which he passed, but his forces were too depleted to cover the objectives. I won that one 5-2, having lost a Puma patrol.<br />
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<u>Game 2</u> - The mission for this round was Pincer, and I drew against a Soviet player running an "Emcha" (Lend-Lease) tank company. The problem for my opponent was that his list is auto-attack, and so he had to advance right at my tanks. There was really nothing he could do, as my tanks just shredded his Trained troops. It didn't help that despite having Fearless troops he must have failed 5 out of 6 motivation/morale checks that he needed to make (he had 6 platoons in his list, all of them had to take morale checks at some point, only one of them passed). Eventually I broke his company. 6-1 to me.<br />
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<u>Game 3</u> - The mission was Encounter and I was now going against the nightmare list for me: 2 HQ King Tigers, two platoons of two King Tigers each, and two platoons of garbage infantry. My plan was similar to game one: kill the infantry, hopefully kill one King Tiger platoon, then hide until he fails company morale. Unfortunately for me it was just too much. Unlike the Panthers from game one the King Tigers had nothing to fear from my Panzer IV/70's to the front. He just whittled me down until I had nothing left. I killed an infantry platoon but in the end I had to concede. 2-5.<br />
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The winner of the whole tournament ended up being my opponent from Game 3. Apparently he got some very good match-ups for his list and just played within the army's limits. My list can handle one or two of those beasts, but not 6. Second place went to SS-Gepanzerte Panzergrenadiers, and third place went to a British Assault Company backed-up by Crocs.<br />
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I'll say that running a tournament while also playing in one is exhausting, and I wouldn't recommend doing it. There is just too much going on to focus on winning your game as well as policing everyone else's. Anyway, onto the pictures, with a short passage on what I'd like to try next time as a TO:<br />
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What I'd like to try in the future:<br />
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1. Different Scoring System - I have been seeing some tournaments use a scoring system of 3 points for a win, 1 point for a loss, and 0 points for a draw. It's an intriguing idea, but one that really only works in Fair Fight missions. Either way I'd like to see the current battle point system used as more of a tie-breaker than as the deciding factor in who is declared the winner. Overall I think this is mostly a problem for 3 game tournaments, as 5 game tournaments end up with a better spread.<br />
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2. Different Missions - Unfortunately the tournament regulars at my shop have enough issues with keeping track of the regular missions, but I'd love to work in the <a href="http://www.wwpd.net/p/downloads.html" target="_blank">Domination missions</a>. However I am worried about only causing frustration. Also, since I don't work at the store I am reliant upon the employees arriving on time to give me enough time to set up the tables...hint hint - they're never on time. We barely have enough time to get the tables set up, let alone mark out domination points.<br />
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3. No Reserves - Some people were complaining, as they always do, about how they rarely get to play with their full army on the table. Some tournaments have had gimmicks where every mission will be Free-for-All. I would consider doing this, but maybe spice things up by adding an Ambush (normal or immediate). Maybe, and this is connected to the point above, we can have a deployment scheme similar to Blind Domination but keep the objective setup and conditions the same as Free for All?<br />
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All of these suggestions are made with no testing to any sort of deep analysis, but hopefully will spark some discussion. Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed the article.<br />
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Remember that semi-regular FoW talk can be had on Twitter, follow me <a href="https://twitter.com/piflamesofwar" target="_blank">@piflamesofwar</a><br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01566457583865121822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5752705221534094802.post-48051926547285192152013-12-06T07:04:00.000-08:002013-12-06T07:04:00.114-08:00Phase Craze: MovementHoly Hell, this is going to be a mammoth topic to cover so I apologize in advance for whatever shortcomings you feel this article contains. I'm going to do my level best to explain some of the ins-and-outs of the Movement Phase and why I think it's the most important phase in any game of FoW.<br />
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<img src="http://www.liverpoolwarmuseum.co.uk/images/toppics/maproom.jpg" height="341" width="640" /><br />
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The precursor to hex-based board games, as well as the Allied Victory, whichever is more important...</div>
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Essentially, the importance of the movement phase stems from two factors: 1. the lack of probability hindering your actions, and 2. the way in which your movement dictates the rest of your turn as well as the entirety of your opponent's turn.<br />
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In my <a href="http://dminusone.blogspot.com/2013/11/phase-craze-intro-and-deployment.html" target="_blank">first Phase Craze article</a> I explained how my general philosophy of the game boils down to a rough analysis of probability, and how each phase of the game increases the amount of chance involved in the game. Aside from the Deployment step, the phase of the game with the least amount of probability is the movement step.<br />
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Think about it, when do you need to roll dice in the movement phase? The distances traveled across slow/difficult going isn't rolled randomly like in other games; it's already set in the rules. Infantry can go anywhere, at the same movement rate, regardless of terrain (obviously barring "impassable" terrain).<br />
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<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSWfwOdX2BS8cepNtf9iuTduAVlIbMs48Dgg5arD3YdZeRzORrOz3y2r9UwWQ-m5NlTX7MFn3JoHM0WT9Y35YXvuKKURq9ptRyDjcxwBI3Edd9E8DuxTyklp_xPl9qKKVwhFAC0dOrgGk/s640/100_2780.JPG" height="480" width="640" /><br />
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The Ardenne Forest</div>
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The most frequent occasions where you'll have to roll dice are for bog checks and unpinning/unbailing/unbogging (and technically these are in the starting step, not the movement step). For all of these checks the odds are determined in advance. Going through difficult terrain? Don't roll a 1. Going through rivers or buildings? It's a skill check. There is not a lot of randomness in the movement phase. Like the deployment phase, this is both a blessing and a curse. It's blessing because most movement plans can be enacted unhindered by the dice; it's a curse because the onus is on your skill as a player to move properly. Make no mistake, one turn of bad movement can cost you the game.<br />
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You need your movement step to set up your plans for shooting and assaulting not just in your own turn, but in your opponent's turn as well. You need your movement to maximize the effectiveness of your army's weapons and mitigate the probability involved in each of the "deadly" phases. Likewise, your movement will have to account for the enemy's retaliation.<br />
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<img src="http://fc06.deviantart.net/fs71/f/2010/244/b/2/planning_by_professornature-d2xtc90.jpg" height="499" width="640" /><br />
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Talk about anticipating the target's movement!</div>
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<u>Cover</u>: Proper use of covering terrain is an essential component to any game of FoW. Yes, there will be some games that, for whatever reason, are played on what will amount to pool tables. Even then you will need to adapt and make the best of the available terrain.<br />
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Remember that infantry can find cover no matter where they end up. Whether by digging-in or going to ground, infantry can find cover even in open terrain. Any terrain can be turned into a strongpoint if enough infantry and light-medium guns are holding it down.<br />
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Likewise, vehicles on the attack need to find the routes that offer the most concealment to enemy fire. In my experience, especially when I have a recovery vehicle available, I have never been afraid to move straight through Difficult Going, simply accepting any 1's that come along.<br />
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As an aside: if you're playing a tank company then get the recovery vehicle! It's a must!<br />
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<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMxn_b0qLVWfV3P3qzC_1KmsFpizfKsfyY3a-KVj3kudcA3hGd-8UZ0dxGAbRudufMoJ0v76mvNbbXFQNl-c3wFLwRfqONWfMH6v-npWFJeZcLhhJJbrNNHP5v0x0ceO1VG_YaEiHb9ho/s640/pic_021_surrey_bergepanther_and_sturmtiger_175.jpg" height="369" width="640" /><br />
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Just ask this Sturmtiger crew</div>
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With that out of the way: again, I usually just take my chances and risk the roll of a 1. Generally this has two advantages - first, my opponents aren't expecting it and this can throw them off balance. Second, at the termination point of this movement (say, through woods) my vehicles are now in cover, which will make return fire that much more difficult for my opponent. Of course, you must be careful if your opponent has infantry in the area, since if you bog while falling back from an assault your day will be ruined very quickly.<br />
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<u>Setting Up Shooting</u>: how will your movement impact your shooting phase, and where will it leave your troops in the enemy's shooting step? We will delve into this topic more in my Shooting Phase article, but for now just consider the basics.<br />
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If you already have Line of Sight and the range to hit enemy troops, then generally it is preferable to stay still and fire at full RoF. Obviously your opponent will rarely be so obliging, so you need to consider how your movement can best threaten his troops. Likewise, you need to think about whether your movement will play into an enemy's plans. A good example:<br />
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I have a Panzer platoon hull-down behind a hill, further than 16" from enemy British tanks. Against any other nation I am probably in a great position. Those tanks will need 6's to return fire against me, while I will most likely need only 4's or 5's. However, against the British I am destined to lose that scenario because of the Semi-Indirect Fire rule (same goes for the Cat Killers rule).<br />
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<img src="http://images.wikia.com/world-war-2/images/7/74/SU_100.jpg" height="389" width="640" /><br />
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I'd love to know what Soviet tankers honestly thought about their ridiculous-looking vehicles</div>
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Having become well-doctrined with tanks and other vehicles, I know that infantry can be forced to stay in place by the careful movement of even a few vehicles. WWPD's Dirty Jon loves to bring up the classic example of how even 2 8-rads can keep a small infantry platoon in place because of the threat of being MG-ed as soon as they try to move. This can obviously frustrate an opponent's attempts to counter your moves and cover objectives.<br />
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My general gameplan is to get my tanks into great positions and keep them there for a couple of turns of full RoF shooting. Of course sometimes an assault will be necessary, which leads me to...<br />
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<u>Setting Up Assaults</u>: The most important game rule to remember for the way that movement and assault interact is that if you are going to assault then you must shoot as if you moved (again, this is why Flames of War rocks: there is so must integration between the rules and so must strategy involved in every step). I consider this the most important rule (aside from actually getting within 4" for the charge) because you will need to decide in the movement step whether your moving-RoF will be enough to soften up and pin the target platoon.<br />
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<img src="http://albumwar2.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/39062-728x866.jpg" height="640" width="538" /><br />
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This qualifies as being pinned down</div>
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You will also need to have an avenue of escape. It is not a good idea to assault if the only route by which your vehicles can fall back is blocked by difficult terrain, because I assure you that your tanks will decide to bog at that exact moment.<br />
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<u>Covering/Capturing Objectives</u>: the rules for controlling/contesting objectives are simple. If you have an active (unbogged/unbailed) team within 4" of an objective then you are contesting. If there are no active enemy teams within 4" of that objective then you are controlling it.<br />
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Pay careful attention as to when the objectives go hot. In a recent game I forced an opponent to spring his ambushing Panthers far away from my main battle force because I sent a 70-point recce unit to contest a far-flung objective. Sure, I lost the recce unit, but now his Panthers were far away from the real battle. The movement of my recce troops toward the objective forced him to commit his most powerful unit in a poor location. This is a prime example of how the movement of even your smallest units can have an enormous impact on the game.<br />
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<img height="305" src="https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQ4Ke_vT7C9JZaI-5NL1McLpL1X0q-ldfe-wPf9q6gbNWxlynSZWw" width="640" /><br />
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Recon: winning games since Version 3</div>
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No matter how you look at it, the movement phase is of prime importance in FoW. Every other action that you take in your turn will be the direct result of the choices you made regarding the movement of your troops. Likewise your opponent's turn will also be a general reaction to your movement.<br />
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Much like deployment, you are master of your own fate in the movement phase. Obviously I can't delve into the details of every eventuality for infantry, transports, and armored vehicles, but I hope that reading through this article has at least given you a new appreciation of the movement phase. I truly believe that expert movement is one of the keys to winning games of FoW, which is why my armies tend to be highly mobile.<br />
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As always please remember to follow me on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/piflamesofwar" target="_blank">@piflamesofwar</a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01566457583865121822noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5752705221534094802.post-12122641074611948622013-11-27T09:44:00.000-08:002013-11-27T09:46:40.396-08:00Phase Craze: Intro and DeploymentHey everyone. For a while now I've been wanting to write a series of general tactics articles concerning each of the turn phases and the deployment phase in Flames of War. Having been influenced by the math-wizardry of Eric Riha I have definitely developed my own theories about how best to exploit each one of the turn phases in Flames of War, and how to tailor that philosophy to the goals of different armies.<br />
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In this article we will explore my general philosophy and then delve into the basics of deployment, which won't take as long to explain as movement, shooting, and assaulting (although its importance is no less critical to victory than any of those phases).<br />
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<img src="http://www.jfklibrary.org/~/media/assets/Audiovisual/Still%20Photographs/Ernest%20Hemingway%20Photograph%20Collection/EH06891P.jpg" height="635" width="640" /><br />
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"Which table quarter should we choose?"</div>
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It took a while for me to really progress as a FoW player. After learning the basics in V2 I promptly stopped playing during grad school, when I focused all of my energies on working during the day and on weekends and then attending classes at night. When I came back at the tail-end of V2 I had to re-absorb a lot of the nuances of the game, and then re-learn it all over again with V3. Frankly, I was stagnating for a while, and was hardly doing anything more than lining my figures across the board and moving in straight lines.<br />
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Two factors began to make a difference: the first was my innate competitiveness. I wanted to learn how to become a better player and hobbyist in general, and so I studied what others in the game were doing. Critical to this effort was the <a href="http://www.wwpd.net/" target="_blank">WWPD crew</a>. Their battle reports, podcasts, and enthusiasm for the game really helped spur my development as a hobbyist.<br />
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<img src="http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s217/flamesofwar_sjm/FowReports/WilliamsburgMuster09/Indys%20Pics/IMG_3140.jpg" height="480" width="640" /><br />
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It all started with this genius...</div>
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The second major breakthrough was understanding the math involved in the game. <a href="http://www.wwpd.net/2012/03/flames-of-war-statistics-101-pt-1.html" target="_blank">Eric Riha's articles</a> should be required reading for anyone looking to progress as a FoW player, and as a gamer in general. I promise you that he makes the math easy to understand, and you can begin applying it to your gaming right away.<br />
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These paragraphs are a short way of explaining how I arrived at my general philosophy; the guiding principle with which I play the game - and here it is...<br />
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<b>Each phase of the game increases the level of randomness that will affect the player.</b> For some of you this is obvious, but I meet a lot of players who haven't experienced this realization.<br />
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Think about it: in deployment, except when you're rolling for attacker/defender, you are in complete control of your army. In the movement step you have to unbail, roll bog checks, and occasionally roll for unreliable vehicles. In the shooting step you're rolling dice to hit, your opponent is rolling saves, you're then rolling firepower tests. In assault you're possibly rolling more bog checks, the enemy is rolling defensive fire, you're rolling saves, then rolling to attack, then he counters, and on and on and on...<br />
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<img src="http://stochastix.files.wordpress.com/2008/02/dice.jpg" height="502" width="640" /><br />
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You see what I mean? Each phase involves an escalating number of die rolls. The key to my success has been understanding and predicting how to best reduce the elements of chance, and put as much of the game as possible under my direct control. So now we will start with the phase that involves the least amount of chance...<br />
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<u><b>Deployment</b></u> - The key to understanding the high stakes of deployment is this: you only get one chance to get it right each game. You will have multiple opportunities to move, shoot, and assault, but deployment only ever happens once.<br />
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Luckily, deployment rarely comes down to chance. Your army composition will usually determine attacker/defender, and in Fair Fight missions both you and you're opponent begin on equal footing. The flip side of this advantage is that you, and you alone, are responsible for mistakes in deployment, and those mistakes can't be easily corrected.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv2nreWQW4GShYQStqIhwcQD3K51whtdu4EDSD1B7w-UnpZMJwvAkYYM3KkboWGMHIggNBqLqEla6XKCFQH8Gt50ucX0Fz-XhmDiGQcEw-j2jnlJOemR_yMqrlj1u-6CSOfbtsbQPaM6pL/s1600/tiger-tank-23.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv2nreWQW4GShYQStqIhwcQD3K51whtdu4EDSD1B7w-UnpZMJwvAkYYM3KkboWGMHIggNBqLqEla6XKCFQH8Gt50ucX0Fz-XhmDiGQcEw-j2jnlJOemR_yMqrlj1u-6CSOfbtsbQPaM6pL/s1600/tiger-tank-23.jpg" height="420" width="640" /></a></div>
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Your slow tanks might be scary, but will be marginalized and used for trophy pictures if deployed incorrectly</div>
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There are three big things to pay attention to when deploying your force: Terrain, Victory Conditions, and Turn One Killers.<br />
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<u>Terrain</u>: this has been covered ad nauseum (spelling?) in other articles and podcasts, so I'll just repeat the basics. Find the avenues of advance that will benefit your army the most. Infantry will be looking for large areas of cover. Tanks will be looking for clear areas to tread across but that will also allow then to jump from cover to cover. Always be mindful of where the objectives will be placed. Make your opponent's life as difficult as possible by placing the objectives where he doesn't want them.<br />
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<img src="http://www.bigislandvideonews.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/lava.jpg" height="351" width="640" /><br />
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Generally a poor path of approach, lots of difficult terrain tests</div>
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<u>Victory Conditions</u>: Make sure you know when the objectives "go hot". For example: In Breakthrough it won't necessarily do you any good as the attacker to double-time everything over to the objectives on Turn 1, since your opponent has six turns to contest. Likewise, in the Fair Fight and "vertical" defensive missions, you can't just cede an objective to the attacker and wait to muster forces for a counterattack. This will drastically affect your deployment plans since you'll need to know which units have to cover objectives and which units will be able to move around. Again, this is going to depend largely on army composition so I can't give too much specific advice here.<br />
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<u>Turn One Killers</u>: This are the units in your army (or your opponent's army) that have the power to do significant damage at the very start of the game. These are the units that can pull off the dreaded "Alpha Strike". Usually it takes a couple of turns to get units into position before the real bloodshed starts, but some units can pounce at the word "go". The common example that I see a lot is Stuarts in Fair Fight missions.<br />
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In Fair Fight missions all teams begin the game gone-to-ground, but are not dug-in. I'll give you a scenario that I had a couple of weeks ago. I was against an opponent using trained British 5.5 heavy artillery (yes, it was a Blue vs. Blue mission). Those guns don't have gun shields, and were not dug-in since I had the first turn. My unit of 5 Stuarts, with 5 MG shots each needing 4's to hit, took out those 5.5 guns on Turn 1 because firepower checks weren't needed.<br />
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<img src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8d/M5_Stuart_tank,_Thunder_Over_Michigan_2006.jpg" height="426" width="640" /><br />
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Underestimate these guys at your peril</div>
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Another scenario that comes up a lot is the defender deploying too close to the attacker in Breakthough and Counterattack. In each of those missions the attacker can potentially start his recon units close enough to opposing units to lift gone-to-ground on Turn 1. The defender might have deployed what looked like an imposing gun-line, but it won't look so impregnable when the attacker's entire army shoots full RoF at them on Turn 1.<br />
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Spearhead can be very powerful, and many of your opponents will rely on it. Luckily it <a href="http://dminusone.blogspot.com/2013/02/countering-spearhead.html" target="_blank">can be fairly easy to stymie</a>, depending on the mission. Just remember that independent teams and warrior teams cannot shut down recon/spearhead moves. I encourage everyone to read the rules for recce moves and spearhead carefully, since I see a lot of people playing it incorrectly. In sum: teams attempting a recce/spearhead move must stop when they come with 16" and LoS of an enemy team, whether they are concealed or not (in this case LoS is all that matters).<br />
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One deployment exercise that has helped me in the past is to visualize where I want my army to be by Turn 2. Deployment can be daunting and players can get flustered and make mistakes, but just take a minute to visualize how you want the game to play out.<br />
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Obviously every turn phase can have thousands of words written about each and every tactical scenario, but I don't want that to be the goal of these articles. Instead, I hope that this has given you an idea of the overall strategy that I use when considering deployment. In all honesty, I play very mobile armies that allow me to correct deployment mistakes rather easily. Infantry armies are going to struggle with this, so if you're an infantry player I advise you to take just two extra minutes each game to really consider your deployment options.<br />
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Practice and planning are the key: luckily this is our hobby, so the practice is awesome!<br />
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Follow me on Twitter...it's not hard <a href="https://twitter.com/piflamesofwar" target="_blank">@piflamesofwar</a><br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01566457583865121822noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5752705221534094802.post-1902402357395604112013-11-22T10:24:00.002-08:002013-11-22T10:24:50.447-08:00BatRep: German Panzers vs. Brits in CounterattackHi everyone, I know it has been a while since my last post but work and vacation have left little time for our great hobby. Luckily I was able to get in a game the other night against my previous opponent, who was looking for a rematch after having me on the ropes in <a href="http://dminusone.blogspot.com/2013/10/batrep-1650-lw-german-panzers-vs-brits.html" target="_blank">our last battle</a>. We played a 1650 Late-War game, and I wanted to really try and challenge my army. Since my opponent has Crocs he becomes auto-attack, which can really knock my army off balance in missions with Mobile Reserves, or missions with screwy deployment zones. So, we decided to limit our options to Surrounded, Cauldron, or Counterattack (a highlight reel of most players' <i>least</i> favorite missions).<br />
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We rolled for Counterattack, which was fine by me since a similar list really struggled for me in this mission at a <a href="http://dminusone.blogspot.com/2013/10/tournament-report-from-nanuet-ny.html" target="_blank">recent tournament</a>. Just FYI, my iPhone camera ended up taking a slew of blurry pictures so there may be times in this report where words have to take the place of pictures (never ideal for batreps), so I apologize in advance.<br />
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<img height="369" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2f/ChurchillTank.jpg" width="640" /><br />
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I arrived at my FLGS to find the table set-up already. I would consider this terrain to be pretty dense, but leave a comment and let me know what you think. Personally I'd be fine with this terrain density at a tournament...so long as other tables were a little lighter to add some variety.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCb-pxhaNca1bmr9Z2qMhqO2IPKvvmBiHEVPahPlBsy32OtPci18A5bqZKVYNkxNE7gz3NQcR66Q13lDP4yYvxmLaUfLpVFAwCnBecAAGR3mBdbPZ9Cpx42a3GyHZcAASnEe95WVLimeP4/s1600/Garrett+Fifth+003.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCb-pxhaNca1bmr9Z2qMhqO2IPKvvmBiHEVPahPlBsy32OtPci18A5bqZKVYNkxNE7gz3NQcR66Q13lDP4yYvxmLaUfLpVFAwCnBecAAGR3mBdbPZ9Cpx42a3GyHZcAASnEe95WVLimeP4/s1600/Garrett+Fifth+003.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></div>
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You can see the table quarters marked by the tan dice. I chose to deploy in the bottom-right quarter.<br />
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My army list is the same Panzer list I've been using for a while at the 1650 level. Although it tends to bleed points I am yet to lose a battle with it. This list doesn't do anything spectacular, but the units work well together and are deadly to most opponents. From Grey Wolf:<br />
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HQ - 2 Panzers + Bergepanther Recovery Vehicle (not shown in pic below, just a Panther hull in-game)<br />
4 Panzers<br />
4 Panzers<br />
3 StuGs<br />
3 Mobelwagens (my new favorite support unit)<br />
3 Pumas<br />
3 Pumas<br />
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For some reason the lighting makes it seem like my Pumas and AA have a completely different basecoat</div>
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The Pumas are a bit pricey at a combined 300 points, but they're so good and three veteran vehicles can really do a good job at shutting down ambushes.<br />
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My opponent deployed his army straight from his bag so I couldn't get a picture, but it was CV Canadian Infantry:<br />
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HQ<br />
Infantry Platoon<br />
Infantry Platoon<br />
2 Crocs<br />
4 Achilles<br />
4 6-pounders<br />
3 Uni. Carriers<br />
3 Uni. Carriers<br />
Limited Air - Typhoons<br />
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He is still struggling to find an optimal British list at 1650. He really loves his Crocs but, personally, I don't know if they're a great investment.<br />
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If we are judging from the previous picture of the table my opponent deployed in the top-right quarter. Everyone should take notice that in Counterattack you do not have to deploy exactly as the diagram in the rulebook shows; you need only deploy in a table quarter adjacent to your opponent (so of the three remaining quarters the only one the attacker can't use is the one diagonally opposite the defender's). Also, fun fact, Warriors that are independent teams can't be held in ambush. I'd been playing that wrong for a while.<br />
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I chose to deploy both of my Panzer IV platoons, holding one of them in ambush. So I'd be starting with just my 1iC, 2iC, and a single Panzer platoon on-table (Mobile Reserves can be rough).<br />
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The other objective is between two buildings in the top-right of this picture </div>
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Crocs prepare to rumble</div>
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My opponent opens by moving his recce patrols up along the roads toward the objective in my table quarter, so they will be able to lift Gone-to-Ground (GtG) on my tanks next turn. His Achilles platoon moves into the quarter diagonally opposite mine, ready to push on either objective. Otherwise there is no action since my teams are Veteran, Concealed, GtG, and over 16" away.<br />
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In my first turn I decline to reveal my ambush. I get a little lucky by rolling for reserves and getting my first platoon, which I choose to make the StuGs in order to give the Achilles something to worry about.<br />
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I also move my 1iC and 2iC to engage a carrier patrol since they're going to lift GtG on me anyway. Needing high numbers to hit I only manage to bail 1.<br />
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On his next turn he rolls for planes and gets three (!) bearing down on my 1iC and Bergepanther. He also successfully lifts GtG on my Panzers.<br />
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Here they come...</div>
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Even having lifted GtG my teams are still outside of 16" for the most part, so between needing 6's to hit me and getting the armor bonus I bounced all but one of his shots, which resulted in a bailed Panzer IV. Most importantly his planes failed to range in, a problem that would plague him all game. </div>
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On my next turn I again hold my ambush, but get some reserves, this time in the form of Pumas. I move all of the Panzer IV's (except my commanders) back into the woods so they become invisible to his tanks and AT guns. The goal was also to draw his Crocs in closer which would make my planned ambush more effective. One tank bogged but the Bergepanther took care of it in the shooting phase. The StuGs double-timed to cover the other objective.<br />
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Sorry for the blurry picture </div>
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We have the makings of a pincer movement here against the Achilles</div>
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For my only shooting this turn my commanders once again unload into a recce patrol, this time wiping them off the board.</div>
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"We warned you to not lift GtG on us!" </div>
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On my opponent's turn he fires the Crocs at my 2iC, but once again only manages a bail. His "blue" infantry also move up.<br />
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The situation at the bottom of 3; one Croc next to a woods got cut out of the frame</div>
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The time had come to spring my ambush. My opponent had left a little too much space available for me in the woods next to his Crocs. I left two tanks completely in the woods to blaze away with full RoF, and swung the other two out into the thick of things to provide a better defensive fire zone in case his infantry tried an assault. On the other side of the table my two Puma patrols and the StuGs were angling to spring a trap on the now vulnerable Achilles platoon.</div>
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This is what the ambush looked like</div>
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But then my Panzers completely whiffed! I didn't even land a hit on the Crocs! My other shooting was more successful. My original Panzer platoon dropped two stands of "blue" infantry, and my StuGs took a long-range shot at the Achilles platoon and destroyed one.<br />
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I broke the commander's head off the left StuG. Also, I have to give those guys an ink wash</div>
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My Panzers from the ambushing platoon stormtroopered into whatever cover was available to them in order to reduce the effectiveness of return fire. Luckily for me the futility of my Panzers was equaled by the futility of my opponent's return shooting, and my headlong dive into cover spared me the worst effects of his fire.<br />
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On my turn 5 I tried to retreat the ambushing Panzers but bailed one of them. My shooting was incredibly ineffective this turn, but my Pumas, StuGs, and even my AA were now in position to spring a trap on the Achilles platoon.<br />
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The situation at this point</div>
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On his next turn he moved his "green" infantry into the woods to prepare an assault against my Panzers. His Crocs moved up and unleashed their flamethrowers, and the only tank to emerge un-bailed was the one that was out of range (at the bottom of the above picture). The Achilles platoon also finally answers the StuGs and scores a kill.</div>
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The battle of bad statistics: everyone needs 6's to hit </div>
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Well this isn't good...</div>
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The only hope for my ambushing Panzer platoon is that the infantry fail their tank terror test...which they promptly do.</div>
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On my turn the Pumas, AA, and StuGs complete their envelopment of the Achilles through a good use of road-movement.</div>
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StuGs are below this pic, out of frame</div>
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My bailed Panzers all re-mount (thank you, protected ammo) and they, along with the 2iC, get as many side-armor shots as possible.</div>
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One Croc crew goes to heaven </div>
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And the Achilles are finished off</div>
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With that, my opponent calls the game, 6-1 to me, but would have likely been a 5-2 had he passed his tank terror check. I think my opponent's biggest mistake was isolating his Achilles platoon, but then again he couldn't have just let my StuGs maneuver into position unchecked. Had he moved his Achilles up with the rest of his force they may have contributed more, but my StuGs could have then tore into my opponent's backfield.</div>
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My army continues to perform well, although this is the first time that I haven't given up a point. Other Panzer lists, such as the Atlantik Wall and Meuse lists, have a lot to offer, but I really love the capabilities that 3-team Puma patrols can offer. An alternate version of this list drops the Pumas to two patrols of two 8-rads each, trades the 3 StuGs for 4 Panzers, <i>and</i> gets me Von Sauken....but I love the Puma patrols too much to be rid of them. The 8-rads would not have been much of a threat to the Achilles. </div>
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Next up for this list: I have to get a game against either German or Soviet heavies (tournaments here are open and we often don't have enough players to stay to a strict Red vs Blue arrangement). Preferably I'd like to try and attack those lists to really see how my army fares when I can't simply let heavy armor come to me.<br />
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As always, please follow me on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/piflamesofwar" target="_blank">@piflamesofwar</a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01566457583865121822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5752705221534094802.post-10480001540842814072013-10-31T09:21:00.001-07:002013-10-31T09:21:24.020-07:00Batrep: 1650 LW German Panzers vs. BritsRecently I got in a very close game against one of my regular opponents. Unlike many of my battle reports where I go into detail on every move, I thought I'd try and let the pics do most of the talking, and save the blathering for the "lessons learned" section.<br />
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We rolled randomly for mission and got <b>No Retreat</b>. With Crocs gaining popularity among British players in the store I am starting to get used to being on the defensive, despite being a tank company. But let's be honest, this fits in with history a little bit since the Germans were almost continually on the defensive in the Late War period. The game was fun and came down to the wire, and I learned several lessons that will serve me well in the future.<br />
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I was trying a slightly different list compared to my <a href="http://dminusone.blogspot.com/2013/10/tournament-report-from-nanuet-ny.html" target="_blank">recent tournament list</a>. After the success I had in the final game of the tournament with my recce patrols, I wanted to see if beefing them up would help my force without detracting too much from other units. My 1650-point list, from Grey Wolf:<br />
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HQ - 2 Panzers, recovery vehicle<br />
4 Panzers<br />
4 Panzers<br />
3 StuGs<br />
3 Pumas<br />
3 Pumas<br />
3 Mobelwagens (love these guys! just FYI the models are for wirbelwinds, but we are counting them as mobelwagens)<br />
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Is this theme too subtle?</div>
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My opponent was trying out a Veteran British list from Overlord/Market Garden. He had two infantry platoons, HMGs, 4 Achilles, 2 Crocs (which may have been trained - which would determine whether the list was from Overlord/MG), 2 carrier patrols, and limited air. Unfortunately I didn't get a picture of his force. </div>
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The table after his recce moves</div>
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I decided to deploy two panzer platoons and the AA (having been traumatized by British Air Support at the Nanuet tournament), holding one of those panzer platoons in ambush. I deployed everything such that all units were concealed and thus Gone to Ground.<br />
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Yes, I realize one mobelwagen is missing a turret</div>
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For the first couple of turns I did literally nothing. I roll for reserves before passing it back to my opponent. He takes a couple of shots here and there, but can't even hit me until he is within 16" (veteran, concealed, GtG). </div>
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My first reserves arrive Turn 3, chose the Pumas b/c his infantry was creeping up</div>
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On his Turn 4 he finally kills a tank after his recce patrols lifted GtG. Thus I decide it's time to spring my ambush. Although he shut me down pretty well, the Line-of-Sight rules allowed me to place my tanks behind a building that would allow me to move and get off some shots on two of the Achilles vehicles. My commanders and the other Panzer platoon would focus on the other visible Achilles (there is a picture coming up from my opponent's next turn that explains the situation a little better). I even moved my Pumas out to shoot the rear of an Achilles, thinking that carrier MGs aren't much of a threat (foreshadowing).</div>
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Despite his Achilles vehicles being veteran, hitting the tank hunters wasn't the problem. However, things went downhill with my firepower checks. I hit a total of 4 times and managed....four bails (one double-bail whose motivation save was passed).</div>
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Well shit...</div>
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On his next turn he swung his Achilles platoon around to lay into my Panzers, while the Crocs focused their energy against the tanks covering the other side of the table, and one carrier patrol set themselves up to MG the flanks of my Pumas.</div>
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He killed one Panzer and bailed another with the Achilles, then killed another panzer from the other platoon with his Crocs, and sent the Pumas packing with a flurry of terrible saves on my part!<br />
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Six return shots against the Achilles net two killed and one bailed, but they stick around.<br />
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They then stormtroopered back so they couldn't be assaulted</div>
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StuGs from reserve move up to lend support, MG the the infantry.</div>
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He finally gets air support and targets my last reserve platoon </div>
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The tank hunters knock the platoon below half; I had to roll with my 1iC to keep the last tank around </div>
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In a bright spot, my mobelwagens perform like champs, love those guys!</div>
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In the above picture you can see that he moved his carrier patrol up to attack my AA. My 1iC and 2iC Panzers would subsequently kill them next turn.</div>
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I have to inch-up to keep the objective hot</div>
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Revenge is mine, as I see off the Achilles </div>
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On his next turn the Crocs finish off the other Panzer platoons, leaving the StuGs and Pumas to defend that flank</div>
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In a tournament environment I'd be able to play for time at this point, but with no time limit in this friendly game I need to go for the company break. The remaining puma patrol moves up to attack the HMGs, but are counter-attacked by his carriers, which again wreak havoc on my pumas! I couldn't roll saves with those guys (granted, I was also very aggressive with them).</div>
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StuGs launch a mini-assault against the infantry...</div>
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...and consolidate into cover</div>
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After some back-and-forth between the carriers and the Pumas I was able to bring the Pumas' strength up enough to assault the HMGs, which wiped them out. Meanwhile, the three Panzers and 3 mobelwagens sit tight on the other objective.</div>
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Now, granted, he probably moved his HMGs in such a way as to encourage me to bring them closer to his Crocs, who turned around and immolated the Pumas, but that was a fair trade.</div>
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Since he got planes on this turn he also used them to target my StuGs, which had moved back toward the woods a little. His infantry contesting the objective were too close to the plane, so he got them out of their foxholes to move them away. It wasn't a good move. The plane failed to range-in.<br />
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The absence of the Crocs lets me assault the infantry, running them off</div>
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He was now below half, but passed his first company morale roll. In his last turn he launched a desperate assault against the center objective, but failed tank terror.</div>
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On my next turn I just sat tight in cover, granting me GtG. He then failed a company morale test. I had lost a panzer platoon and both Puma patrols, yielding a 4-3 win.<br />
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<u>Lesson 1</u>: This really applies to every game, but you should never give up. When I whiffed on the Achilles and subsequently lost a couple of Panzers on both flanks <i>and</i> the Puma-platoon-of-failure on the other flank, I knew I was in dire straights. However, I consciously told myself "the game isn't over - play smart, stick to the plan." The "plan" with German panzers is, as always, focus on removing direct threats to the tanks. That is why I kept pounding away at the Achilles, and also why I didn't do anything with my AA (so they could stay focused on the planes).<br />
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<u>Lesson 2</u>: Prioritize your units. When the Achilles platoon knocked my Panzers down to one tank I failed the first platoon morale roll. My 1iC was close enough to re-roll, and I had to make the decision on whether to risk it or not. The fact of the matter was that I felt I would lose the game without that tank, and so I took the chance. That unit, that one tank, was a priority to me.<br />
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Late in the game my opponent had an understrength infantry platoon with his 1iC contesting the objective. He got his two planes in, and tried to knockout some of the StuGs. But to do this he moved his infantry out of their foxholes and away from the objective, even though his plane would have had to range in on the StuGs, then rolled to hit them. The end result might be one dead tank, right? Which does nothing to help him with the game. It was a poor prioritization of units.<br />
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<u>Lesson 3</u>: Stop being so aggressive with the Pumas. This one is all on me. Granted, how many times are 9 MG shots, needing 5+ to hit, going to result in 3 dead Pumas? Still, I need to learn to husband my Puma patrols, as my army can't afford to give up battle points so easily.<br />
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<u>Lesson 4</u>: StuGs still have value. FA 7, modified to 8 at long range, is what kept them in the fight against the Crocs, compared to the panzer platoon that was lost to the Crocs.<br />
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<u>Lesson 5</u>: where have mobelwagens been all my life! <3 those guys, haha<br />
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As always, please follow me on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/piflamesofwar" target="_blank">@piflamesofwar</a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01566457583865121822noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5752705221534094802.post-45415413083369056312013-10-18T07:46:00.000-07:002013-10-18T07:46:02.304-07:00Battle Report: LW US Tanks vs. SS-PanzergrensEarlier this year I used the <a href="http://dminusone.blogspot.com/2013/02/wounded-warrior-charity-tournament.html" target="_blank">winnings from a tournament</a> to get Easy-8's and Jumbo's, because the models and the lists for LW American tanks are simply awesome. The models were a blast to put together and paint up, and remain some of the finest examples of my <a href="http://dminusone.blogspot.com/2013/04/weathering-with-airbrush.html" target="_blank">airbrush weathering technique</a>. Unfortunately, in the entire time since I have had them I have been able to get in all of one game with them. Well, I wanted to change that, and so decided to go full-cheese and run a 1650-point variation on Wilcox's crotch-stomping American Armor list.<br />
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My opponent, who is participating in the current league at Brothers Grim Games and Hobbies, wanted to try out some Fearless Veteran Germans. With armies in tow we rolled for mission and got <b>Breakthrough</b>, which is becoming one of my favorite missions.<br />
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The board, before deployment</div>
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My list, from BG&G:<br />
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(Confident Trained)<br />
HQ - 1 jumbo<br />
Patton<br />
4 Shermans - Jumbo, 2 Easy-8's<br />
4 Shermans - Jumbo, 2 Easy-8's<br />
Armored Rifles<br />
Tank Recon<br />
Priest Battery<br />
Priest Battery<br />
AOP<br />
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I had wanted to run Stuarts instead of Armored Rifles, but like an idiot I had left the Stuarts at home. I am not a fan of trained units in general, but especially trained infantry. Oh well, this will teach me to double-check my army bag before leaving the apartment.<br />
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My opponent was running Totenkopf-SS from Grey Wolf:<br />
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(Fearless Veteran)<br />
HQ - 1iC, 2iC, and 'schreck<br />
Panzergrenadiers (with 3 panzerfausts)<br />
Panzergrenadiers (with 3 panzerfausts)<br />
3 StuGs<br />
Armored Mortars<br />
Heavy Platoon with four AT 9, FP 4+ guns in halftracks<br />
3 7.5cm Pak40's (which would be modeled by my M5 3" guns in-game)<br />
Sporadic Stukas (with the AT 11 cannons, and which looked suspiciously like a P-38 Lightning)<br />
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He was forced to defend and chose to deploy in the table quarter with the most buildings, leaving the other table quarter unoccupied. He chose to put down a panzergrenadier platoon and his Pak40's. I chose to put the armored rifles into the flank march (duh...).<br />
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My plan was to make for the center, and use the cover from the woods as my base of operations. His plan was to try and stay alive until relief came onto the board.<br />
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We move out, not wanting to give our flanks to any early reserves </div>
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Jumbo takes a shot, killing a halftrack and its occupants</div>
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I don't think my opponent realized how quickly he would be brought into the fight by Spearhead. </div>
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He moved one Pak40 onto the hill, and turned the others around to try and knock out the OP Sherman which was sneaking up behind, but all they can do is bail him.<br />
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His planes arrived, but would be blown out of the sky by the .50cal fire from the targeted platoon<br />
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His infantry weigh their odds for assault...</div>
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They charge, but are repulsed by defensive fire! Losing a team in the process</div>
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In my turn I kill a Pak40 with my smooth-riding E8's, but artillery can't get the job done and finish them off. Meanwhile he rolled a slew of infantry saves against his weakened infantry.</div>
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On his turn he gets planes again, and they manage to take out a Jumbo!<br />
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Once again he lines up his infantry for an assault, doing whatever he can to minimize defensive fire. He works it out such that I will only get nine shots, but once again he is repulsed, and the casualties caused by defensive fire drop the platoon below half, and they subsequently flee.<br />
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On my turn three my reserves arrive, and everything that has a gun on it moves up to shoot the Pak40's.<br />
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Every Pak40 gun is destroyed, but the commander makes his platoon morale check and will go on to make his sole-survivor check! I could have company-moraled him at this point, but being Fearless kept him in the game. On his turn three he received two reserves, and brought on his StuGs and the Heavy Platoon. Fire from the Heavy Platoon was ineffective, but the StuGs managed to nail a regular Sherman.<br />
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As an aside, this guy is one of my regular opponents, and I can't tell you how many games we have played where his StuGs have been the bane of my existence, and today was no different.<br />
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My ARP fails to dig-in at the top of my turn 4, which worries me. The artillery and all of the tanks turn their attention on the StuGs, but can only kill one. Patton moves over to support the infantry, and I thought I put him in a pretty safe spot (hint: this is called foreshadowing).</div>
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The last of his reserves come on this turn, the only bright spot being that his Pak40 commander finally failed a sole-survivor check.<br />
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Here they come...</div>
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The StuGs take out another Sherman</div>
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His Panzergrenadiers coming in from reserve stormtroopered ever closer to the objectives, and suddenly the ARP was a little exposed.</div>
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And here we reached probably the pivotal moment of the game, and the moment where I made my biggest tactical error. My tanks could continue their duel with the StuGs, and probably knock them out; or they could turn around and beat up the halftracks that were threatening the objectives, while the artillery dropped smoke on the StuGs. Ultimately, in my tunnel vision, I kept fighting the StuGs.</div>
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A bad turn of shooting saw the StuGs stick around, and now his troops were assaulting the ARP off of one objective!</div>
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Just before the assault... </div>
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Down goes Patton! Down goes Patton! </div>
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I had realized my error too late. One Sherman platoon is able to finish off the StuGs, but now I can't devote their firepower to driving away the armored infantry that is contesting the objective. Even at this stage if I had been able to break the panzergrenadier platoon I would have won the game, but because I was so focused on the StuGs I was left with few troops to counter them.<br />
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Too little, too late...</div>
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His last turn was a disaster for me. My ARP had once again failed to dig-in, and between his MG fire and follow-up assaults he dropped the once mighty platoon to all of two teams. He even got his aircraft, which killed two E8's and bailed my 1iC Jumbo!</div>
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At this point we called it. There was no way I'd be able to contest both objectives next turn.</div>
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Lessons: Obviously the tunnel vision on the StuGs was the key tactical error in this game. If I had focused on killing the panzergrenadiers as soon as they arrived I would have won, plain and simple. I also think I should have kept the ARP's halftracks on the table, as their MG fire can stymie a mounted assault better than pinned LMG's can.</div>
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Then again, the big <i>strategic </i>error on my part was forgetting my Stuarts at home, which necessitated bringing the ARP in the first place! Tell me they wouldn't have been better suited for this fight!</div>
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Thanks for reading, as always please check me out on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/piflamesofwar" target="_blank">@piflamesofwar</a> </div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01566457583865121822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5752705221534094802.post-39374786565377771562013-10-16T12:40:00.000-07:002013-10-16T12:47:24.822-07:00Tournament Report from Nanuet, NYRecently I was able to participate in a 1780-point Late-War tournament held at ToyWiz in Nanuet, NY (about 25 minutes north of NYC). I was eager to get in on this event because it would likely be the last of the 1780 tournaments for a while, since the official LW points levels will be dropping to 1650 (a good move in my opinion).<br />
<br />
The rounds were short, roughly two hours and fifteen minutes per game, and so I wasn't able to get any good pictures of games in progress. However, I did get a few shots of the tables, and wanted to use this as a chance to talk a little about list-building and terrain. I'll also drop some historical pics to break up the narrative.<br />
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A preview of what's to come *wink wink*</div>
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Right up to the morning of the tournament I was still conflicted over what list to bring. I had worked out a very mean and cheesy Patton-led Armored Rifle company from BG&G, and felt pretty confident with it. However, my last two tournament wins have come with Patton lists, and he is often seen as a crutch at best, and outright cheesy at worst.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU3p0U8thf63n7R5pvOQI8ClnVDEiHriaVgU1PNBXPXAhH0KMBUu8UofXH-UTirnLoDywHLEsDJExsBIb_AwVQWwPw2x_hiAsY4HXV5Z8IgWUN5P3ZPOaqYvDNTisYAjxVfCBJWdnAmR5j/s1600/patton.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU3p0U8thf63n7R5pvOQI8ClnVDEiHriaVgU1PNBXPXAhH0KMBUu8UofXH-UTirnLoDywHLEsDJExsBIb_AwVQWwPw2x_hiAsY4HXV5Z8IgWUN5P3ZPOaqYvDNTisYAjxVfCBJWdnAmR5j/s1600/patton.jpg" height="640" width="522" /></a></div>
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Not this time, my friend</div>
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My other option was to run a Panzer list that I had been testing. From Grey Wolf: HQ Panzers, Von Sauken, two platoons of four Panzers each, four StuGs, three mobelwagens, two patrols of 8-rads, and sporadic air. The air support was there specifically to knockout AOP's, as I was quite worried about Naval Gunfire Support (NGFS). I really like Von Sauken's ability to re-roll storntrooper moves, and his re-roll for reserves could be amazing if I was ever forced to defend<br />
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A couple of days before the tournament I realized that there was another option. I love my Panthers. I think I did a good job painting them (as far as my painting is concerned) and I think they're some of the best models that Battlefront has ever produced. Plus, they're Panthers...they're so cool! The problem is they don't provide the value they once did, and they're very costly in terms of points. It suddenly dawned on me that this could be my last opportunity to run them in a tournament for quite some time, given that they simply don't fit into a 1650 list.<br />
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Put us in the game, Coach!</div>
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I kicked around some ideas and came up with this, from Panzers to the Meuse:<br />
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HQ - 2 Panzers<br />
4 Panzers<br />
4 Panzers<br />
3 Panthers<br />
3 Mobelwagens<br />
2 234/1 Armored Cars<br />
2 234/1 Armored Cars<br />
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And that's it. I didn't get any test games with this exact list but I had been reviewing Panzer tactics with the help of the <a href="http://forum.wwpd.net/" target="_blank">WWPD forums</a>. Ultimately I chose this list purely because I wanted to run the Panthers. I'll admit that I got some quizzical looks from the other FoW tournament players at my FLGS, as we have all heard of the death of heavy armor. But I wanted to risk it, and I needed to get away from the crutch of Patton.<br />
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So last Saturday we drove up to ToyWiz in Nanuet, NY to join the guys of the Ordo Malleus gaming club in one of their regularly-held FoW tournaments. I was joined by two other guys from my gaming group, each of whom were running variations on American tanks. One had some goodness from BG&G (no Patton or E8's though), and the other guy had a Light Tank Co. from Overlord. Most of the sixteen players who attended were shop regulars, but we were joined by the one and only Eric "Papa" Turner!<br />
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Yeah Paw-Paw!</div>
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Alright, enough chat, onto the games!<br />
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<b>Game 1</b> was Free-for-All against an American Armored Rifle Co. My opponent was relatively new to Americans, but knew enough to acknowledge that trying to dig Armored Rifles off of an objective can be a grueling process. He had two full, veteran ARP's, 5 shermans (2 E8's, 1 jumbo), Armored Mortars, tank recon, and 4 Jackson TD's. We were on this table:<br />
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We played the higher hedges as LoS-blocking but not bocage</div>
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I had the right side if we are going by the orientation of the above picture. I deployed my Panthers in the center, with the two Panzer platoons on my left flank to make the big push to the objective. My two recon units and mobelwagens were deployed to cover the other objective. He deployed his tanks and an ARP to cover the objective on my left (by the hill in the bottom-left), and left everything else in the area of the objective on my right.<br />
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The goal was to delay/stymie the deployment of the Jacksons with my recon, and then once they were deployed and I had weakened the Shermans I would swing one Panzer platoon back to my right objective. This would allow the Panthers and remaining Panzers to push the objective on my left. The road network would also allow me to redeploy my recon to lift gone-to-ground on the ARP.<br />
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The game went relatively according to plan. I got a little lucky in my first turn when, because his Jumbo was behind a hill and thus not a valid target, I destroyed two of his Shermans, including an E8. This spooked him and so he ran his tanks into a woods, from which they were never to emerge because I would have shot him into oblivion. My recon units also put enough pressure on him so that he felt obliged to pop his Jacksons all the way back in his deployment zone.<br />
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<img src="http://www.efour4ever.com/44thdivision/images/V3_slugger.gif" height="414" width="640" /></div>
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Get outta my house!</div>
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He hesitated too long on my right flank, and just couldn't fire enough shots at my veteran vehicles. My mobelwagens, at one point, killed two Jacksons and bailed another! Meanwhile my assault group made their move and pulled off a very successful assault against the ARP holding the left objective. Because his Shermans were in the woods they didn't have the movement distance to contest the objective. In his last turn he killed my mobelwagens and got a lucky bazooka shot against the last 8-rad in one patrol, which gave me a 4-3 win.<br />
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<b>Game 2</b> was Counterattack, and I had to defend against Brits with lots of air, lots of artillery, and Crocs. I'll admit that I thought my chances in this game were slim, and my opponent's dice rolling didn't help. I deployed one Panzer platoon and held another in ambush. On turn 1 his artillery and aircraft each killed a panzer, and his Crocs, getting 3 shots needing 6's, hit all three times. I passed a morale check with my remaining bailed tank. In my turn 1 I popped my Panzers from ambush and took out enough of one artillery unit to render them useless, but couldn't get them to run away.<br />
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This was the board</div>
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From then on it was a melee, but with him rolling hot and me rolling below average. My veterancy kept me in the game, but I was bleeding every single turn. At one point I had four Panther shots against two trained Shermans, and I rolled four 1's (I have the witnesses to prove it). Ultimately the game came down to one die roll: I had to stormtrooper (and not bog) my AA guns to put them within contesting range of an objective, which they did. From there I was able to outlast my opponent, whose attacks were too spread out across my units to break me. Each turn his artillery would target one units, his tanks another, and his aircraft yet another. Had he tried to finish off platoons one by one I would have eventually failed company morale. I was fortunate to pull out a 4-3 win.<br />
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<b>Game 3</b> was Fighting Withdrawal against German grenadiers. This game was won in deployment. My opponent didn't think that I would charge directly at a unit of three 7.5cm Pak40's with an open field of fire...HA! That's all he had covering one objective, and I made it my business to get there by the start of my turn 5. Interestingly I was back on the board from game 1, only now I was advancing from the opposite side.<br />
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The game went nearly according to plan, except that my assault group wasn't made up of Panzers. By a series of strange incidents my 234/1's ended up behind the Pak40's. One patrol assaulted from one end, and the other patrol came in from the other end. The guns were wiped out, and I had secured the objective. In his next turn he didn't kill them, and so the game was mine. 6-1 to me. This game also featured a successful ambush-prevention effort by my recon against his Tigers. They were the MVP's this game.<br />
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<img src="http://tanks.webz.cz/234_01.jpg" /></div>
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They fared better than this one</div>
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This was enough to get me third place for the tournament, as the TO was scoring the games strictly on victory points. Eric Turner finished second, despite drawing one game (draws count as losses). My 4-3 wins cost me in the end, but I know Eric is a much better player than me, and is a fantastic resource on all things hobby related (we talked ancients for quite some time).<br />
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Assembling my winnings</div>
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Lessons: I am pretty surprised that this army went 3-0. The fact of the matter is that this force bleeds victory points. I knew this going in, but goddamn!<br />
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Most of all, I am glad I brought the Panthers along for one last tournament ride. They did pretty well, losing only two tanks the entire tournament. They certainly aren't the end-all be-all they once were, but they have a definite role to play in lists that gel with their incredible points cost.<br />
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Overall I really liked the terrain that was set up for these tables. There was a mix of heavy and light terrain, and I never thought that the tables were inherently unfair against anyone. I would like to see more tournaments offer a wide range of terrain densities, as WW2 wasn't always fought in crowded woods or bocage country.<br />
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As always, please follow me on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/piflamesofwar" target="_blank">@piflamesofwar</a><br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01566457583865121822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5752705221534094802.post-75244323271082641632013-09-10T10:23:00.000-07:002013-09-10T10:23:55.782-07:00List Discussion for Upcoming TournamentThis article was prompted by a tweet from <a href="https://twitter.com/kenputski" target="_blank">@kenputski</a> who asked that I share a list that I had recently come up with that didn't force the Sporadic Sturmvogel into it. First, some background: I love the Sturmvogel model, but hadn't yet figured out a way to fit it into a list without feeling like there weren't other things that I'd rather spend the 105 points on. However, while trying to figure out a 1650 veteran Panzer list (the new points standard for Late War) I stumbled into a list that features the Sturmvogel as an organic part of the army, as opposed to a last-minute add-on.<br />
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<img src="http://acepilots.com/german/me262_1.jpg" height="422" width="640" /><br />
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Lately I have been on a Panzer kick, as I seek to dispel the notion that German Panzers can't be competitive in an environment that favors the Western Allies and defenders. While I have reasoned that that trained Panzers (as opposed to veteran) may be the answer (more hulls and more shots in each list) I am worried about their durability when I need to make bold attacks. Also, there is a big difference for artillery when it comes to ranging-in on veteran troops as opposed to trained troops.<br />
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Now, if you want to play veteran German Panzers, the list that generally stands out above all the rest is the <a href="http://www.flamesofwar.com/hobby.aspx?art_id=3730" target="_blank">Panzers to the Meuse pdf</a>. I don't want to hear any bitching from American or British players, and German players should be thankful for this list (Soviet players can go ahead and complain, you poor bastards). There are three things that make this list strong:<br />
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1. Spearhead - The ability to spearhead is huge. A good spearhead move can eliminate entire turns of getting shot at by AT guns and artillery.<br />
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<img height="355" src="http://ryannelson45.50webs.com/pz4ag.jpg" width="640" /><br />
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2. Plentiful, Cheap Recon - The availability of 2-team Puma patrols means that you can bump up your platoon count very quickly without sacrificing tabletop effectiveness. We have all been in situations where we take somewhat useless units simply to pad our platoon count, but in this instance our small units are really good.<br />
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<img height="480" src="http://www.mark-1-tank.co.uk/jpgs/1-6th-puma-sd-kfz-255b.jpg" width="640" /><br />
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If this is a model on someone's lawn they did a great job on the mud effects</div>
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3. Always Attack Tank Company - This list will only ever have to defend against another Always Attacks tank force, and it is perfectly suited to do so. In all other situations it will attack, and thus you can easily predict your army's strategy from game to game. Now, the current meta favors defenders, but as I will explain this list is well-suited to the Always Attack role.<br />
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Luckily for me, this is also one of the lists that include the Sturmvogel.<br />
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So, without further blathering, here is the list:<br />
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HQ - 2 Panzer IV's<br />
4 Panzer IV's<br />
4 Panzer IV's<br />
Gepanzerte Aufklarungs - 2 squads, tank hunter<br />
3 x Puma Patrols<br />
Volks 15cm Nebelwerfers<br />
Armored AA - 2 10/5's<br />
Sporadic Air - Sturmvogel<br />
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Total: 1650 points, 8 Platoons<br />
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What we have here is a basic German list that is made formidable by the Spearhead and Always Attack rule. There are 6 platoons/patrols in this army that will get spearhead/recce moves at the beginning of the game. The three Puma patrols are there to stop ambushes and harass enemy infantry caught in the open. Of course, Allied tanks would be wise not to discount the threat posed by the AT 9 gun on the Pumas. If the situation presents itself then the Pumas, since they are armored, can also be sent around the flanks of artillery parks and eliminate those threats as well.<br />
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<img height="427" src="http://www.vilcabamba.co.uk/Afghanistan%202003/Destroyed_Artillery_Piece.jpg" width="640" /><br />
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Spike the guns!</div>
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The AA and the Sturmvogel's primary responsibility is to take out enemy AOP's. If the Sturmvogel has a lucky game and manages to kill any ground troops, well then that's an added bonus.<br />
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The Nebelwerfers are there to do what they always do: drop smoke. The plan is to concentrate fire on specific targets each turn, and any threat that isn't being dealt with via direct fire will be blanketed in smoke. Their smoke trails and poor training mean that they might become a target for enemy artillery, but that's fine with me: if their artillery isn't shooting at my main force then that's good for me.<br />
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The Aufklarungs are too small a unit to be reckless with. Truth be told, I probably wouldn't even include them if I wasn't forced to. I envision them as staying mounted in their halftracks, running around countering infantry threats. They can assault heavy armor if they have to since everyone is armed with a panzerfaust, and given their speed can even be relied on to flank and assault artillery.<br />
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<img height="487" src="http://memberfiles.freewebs.com/46/29/78992946/photos/undefined/545965_386990434654270_100000299492665_1449226_562197319_n.jpg" width="640" /><br />
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As for the Panzer IV's, there role is obviously to deal with the enemy's armored units and to blast infantry out of their foxholes. They are a superb all-around unit, and their Protected Ammo should keep them in the fight for a while.<br />
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The weaknesses are ones that have always plagued German lists: small units whose losses can't be replaced. I'm just going to have to use smoke and Recce to minimize those losses to the best of my ability. I will also have to be careful of bleeding points with this list, although I have already resigned myself to the fact that I'll probably never win a game 6-1 with these guys. But that's ok, I'll take whatever wins come my way.<br />
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Don't forget to follow me on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/piflamesofwar" target="_blank">@piflamesofwar</a><br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01566457583865121822noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5752705221534094802.post-19283705679296532002013-09-05T08:38:00.003-07:002013-09-05T08:38:55.003-07:00Army on a Budget: Chapter 1 Hi everyone, for a while now I have been thinking of writing a series of articles detailing how new and veteran players alike can go about building an army while sticking to a budget. Let's face it, this is an expensive hobby and once model addiction sets in (the first step is admitting I have problem! haha) the cost factor becomes a serious obstacle. For myself I know that I simply don't have the money or the time to build every army I want.<br />
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<img height="424" src="http://www.solidprinciples.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/empty-pockets.jpg" width="640" /></div>
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Lately I have been kicking around a few ideas for different armies, each with a different approach that would have to be taken toward completing it. In this article I want to set the parameters of the project and then lay out a few of my ideas, and hopefully I'll get some feedback before making my final decision. My goal for this long-term project is not just to build a new force, but to show my two readers out there that careful planning and financial discipline can still provide a rewarding experience.<br />
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<b>Budget:</b> Obviously, the term "budget" is going to mean different things to different people. You need to go over your own finances and decide what exactly you can afford to spend on toy soldiers. That may sound a little harsh, but its the reality. I took a two-year break from the hobby when I was going to grad school at night and making $10/hr during the day at an internship.<br />
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I've decided to set my budget goal at $40-45 per month. Any extra money from one month can carry over to the next. That works out to roughly one tank platoon per month, or gun battery, or infantry company, etc. This will also give me time to finish assembling and painting each unit before moving on to the next one.<br />
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<img height="343" src="http://www.kansascitymamas.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/family-budget.jpg" width="400" /></div>
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<b>Which Army?</b> Now the fun part: which force should I choose? I want to make this as much of a top-to-bottom project as possible, so I don't want to use any models that I already own for this project. While I was thinking about which army to choose I realized that there are some guidelines out there that might be helpful to newer players:<br />
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1. Elite vs. Horde - Generally, armies that have a higher quantity of elite troops or top-notch equipment will require less models than a less-skilled horde army. The less models you have to buy, the cheaper the overall force will be. However, those who get into this hobby rarely stop collecting models, so if you really want to play a Soviet horde then don't be concerned with the overall cost of the project; instead focus on keeping the month-by-month costs under control.<br />
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2. Fun vs. Cost - Let's face it, you could probably build a King Tiger company or a Jagdtiger company for under $100 USD. But that army will be extremely one-dimensional and probably won't garner much success on the tabletop. Newer players have to take their licks starting out, but nobody likes losing all the time. In a similar vein, if everyone around you is playing Late-War then don't build an Early-War army right away. You won't have as much fun with your models if you can't get them on the table (unless you're a pure painter/modeler, in which case building an army on a budget doesn't really apply).<br />
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3. Look into Starter Sets - <a href="http://www.flamesofwar.com/hobby.aspx?art_id=3413" target="_blank">The Open Fire starter set</a> is an incredible buy. If you're thinking about playing as the Germans or Western Allies it's almost a must-have.<br />
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Now that we have the basic parameters out of the way, let's explore a few of the armies and approaches I am thinking about with regard to this project:<br />
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<b>Soviet Engineer Sappers - </b>This list is one in which I see a lot of potential, and the background/fluff is extraordinary. I am currently listening to the audiobook of Cornelius Ryan's <i>The Last Battle</i> (concerning the Battle of Berlin) and the Soviet Engineer Sappers accomplish impossible tasks again and again, through sheer determination. As for the tabletop, by taking the hero and a Spetsnaz platoon you could infiltrate two huge companies of engineers, backed by assault guns and rockets.<br />
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<img height="390" src="http://25.media.tumblr.com/9f5c5b59aa3647cc3c550f5d59fca20e/tumblr_mqju9xDloz1qbsnsoo1_500.jpg" width="640" /></div>
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The downside? I loathe painting infantry, and this force would require a lot of infantry. Plus the company box set is no longer in production, so I won't be able to save on costs from that perspective.<br />
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<b>ANZACs in Vietnam - </b>Flames of War Vietnam has been picking up steam at my FLGS, and while I've been subbing in my WW2 US models I don't yet have a legitimate 'Nam army. <a href="http://www.wwpd.net/2013/08/flames-of-war-anzac-review.html" target="_blank">WWPD's great review</a> of the ANZACs got me interested. The Centurion tanks look awesome, and the sculpts on the infantry could get even me excited about painting them. Plus, as an elite army, I wouldn't have to buy as many units.<br />
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<img height="385" src="http://media.moddb.com/images/groups/1/3/2074/Centurion_2.jpg" width="640" /></div>
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The negatives on this one are pretty obvious: the part of this hobby I enjoy most is the gaming, and while 'Nam is gaining popularity there is still nowhere near as many people playing it as are playing the WW2 era. I might sink money into these guys just to have them rarely see the light of day. Plus, the helicopters remain both expensive and hard to find in stock.<br />
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<b>EW French Tanks - </b>With Historicon being Early-War next year the guys at my FLGS have been playing a lot of this era lately. My Afrika Korps has performed alright, but the French Tank list most appeals to my playing style. This would require me to paint just a little infantry and artillery, and I love painting tanks. The list is competitive and wouldn't be too expensive.<br />
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<img height="400" src="http://www.wwii-photos-maps.com/panzer/French%20Tanks/slides/French%20Hotchkiss%20H-39%20Light%20Tank%20%20001.jpg" width="400" /></div>
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On the flip side I am just starting to find my groove with the Afrika Korps, and the Early-War theater that appeals to me the most is, hands down, the desert. Plus, I don't own the Blitzkrieg book, so that would basically take up a month's budget.<br />
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<b>Hermann Goering Germans - </b>The HG German lists have appealed to me for a long time, but I've never bitten the bullet on them. There are some very unique and tactically appealing force organisations for these guys, and their rules are top notch. Basically, on the tabletop, these guys never run away. Also, once I had completed the army, I would be able to incorporate some of the units into my existing German force. I could also use infantry from the Open Fire Set to get me started on some of the footslogging units for this army.<br />
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<img height="368" src="http://www.militaryfactory.com/armor/imgs/panzer-3-pzkpfw-iii_7.jpg" width="640" /></div>
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The negatives here are more philosophical than anything else: I wouldn't really be starting a new army. I already play Germans regularly. Perhaps to counter this I would try to find units that I haven't bought in the past and work them into this new endeavor. The HG list has some cool options, like Elephants, Hornisse Tank Hunters, and Brummbars. <br />
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<b>Canadian Ri-</b> HA! not going to happen.<br />
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So there you have it. I am open to other suggestions but these are the forces that spring to mind. Thanks for reading and as always please follow me on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/piflamesofwar" target="_blank">@piflamesofwar </a><br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01566457583865121822noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5752705221534094802.post-62743369321404545712013-08-22T09:58:00.001-07:002013-08-22T09:58:11.039-07:00List Discussion for EW 1200-point TournamentWe have an Early War tournament coming up this weekend at Brothers Grim Games and Hobbies, and I have been having a hard time in choosing what list to bring. Frankly, the Germans just don't get a lot at 1200 points (we are keeping to points low to try and draw in more players to EW). It doesn't help that I really have no idea what my opponents will bring. So far, however, I've been able to narrow it down to a few lists.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT91GqarFNO1tLWVctWidifOcP-HJL3e3dgsJuCJY71JAwIcu8wvoolFf1tLOQ68RSdc60TvnNN5fpOEbc9-aVjSbjqxnh8fnHGKw51aqf29UdsHqB_WdmZB9BsUQraCrgdRWmzE38b3Jt/s1600/afrika+panzers+027.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT91GqarFNO1tLWVctWidifOcP-HJL3e3dgsJuCJY71JAwIcu8wvoolFf1tLOQ68RSdc60TvnNN5fpOEbc9-aVjSbjqxnh8fnHGKw51aqf29UdsHqB_WdmZB9BsUQraCrgdRWmzE38b3Jt/s1600/afrika+panzers+027.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></div>
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The first list is what I have been running in my last two <a href="http://dminusone.blogspot.com/2013/08/ew-batrep-japanese-vs-afrika-korps.html" target="_blank">battle reports</a> against <a href="http://dminusone.blogspot.com/2013/08/ew-batrep-japanese-cavalry-vs-afrika.html" target="_blank">the Japanese</a>:<br />
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HQ - Panzer III<br />
3 Panzer III's<br />
4 Panzerjagers<br />
Pioneers<br />
2 8-rads<br />
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It has been a good little list, but it has serious limitations. The lack of an MG on the Panzerjagers means they can't even defensive fire if someone tries to assault them. Also, as good as AT 8 is for EW, their armor 0 leaves them open to being shredded. Plus, at four platoons, this list would leave me in serious trouble for missions like Encounter and Dust-Up, where I have to hold half of my platoons off the table. Then again, if I have to face French armor, I will need that AT 8.<br />
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The next list I've been kicking around has been the Gebergsjager out of <i>Burning Empires</i>:<br />
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HQ<br />
Platoon - Command, light mortar, 4 other teams<br />
Platoon - Command, light mortar, 4 other teams<br />
3 Panzer IV's<br />
2 Pak38's<br />
Light Recon Patrol<br />
Priority Stukas<br />
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This list brings me up to five platoons, so still not ideal for half-on-half-off missions. However, I get a more well-rounded force that retains some speed and adds serious firepower in the form of the Pak38's and the Stukas. However, airplanes can be very fickle, and the Pak38's can do a lot of damage but can also be easily avoided by the enemy. Plus, with this list, I may run into that awful situation of having to attack in No Retreat/Hold the Line/Pincer with an infantry company. Another version of this list dropped the Stukas and adjusted the recon to get a Trained 88, but with only a single gun it would be too easy to smoke every turn.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKIGrrLlX49WjXSa8T3vl0wpGZ0ueKRfHamAeAlKCTMf-VuWy0Tv5co41pyoLs08mAvilbPH8RI6DXZelTmTsjAYHLOhx9cW_BxHHEtNUIYZHW7C_k-ZF1epgc7rWbXxhQmEH7Vu4xT_4k/s1600/afrika+helmet.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKIGrrLlX49WjXSa8T3vl0wpGZ0ueKRfHamAeAlKCTMf-VuWy0Tv5co41pyoLs08mAvilbPH8RI6DXZelTmTsjAYHLOhx9cW_BxHHEtNUIYZHW7C_k-ZF1epgc7rWbXxhQmEH7Vu4xT_4k/s1600/afrika+helmet.jpg" height="478" width="640" /></a></div>
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My last list goes back to the tanks of <i>Hellfire and Back</i>:<br />
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HQ - Panzer IV w/ Recovery Vehicle<br />
3 Panzer IV's<br />
2 Panzer IV's<br />
Pioneers w/ Supply Truck <b><i>OR</i></b> Pak38's<br />
Light Recon Patrol<br />
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This list gives me the Panzer IV's that I prefer over the Panzer III's. The problem is that this list cannot take Panzerjagers, so I subbed them out for two more Panzers. The light recon patrol returns because it has more MG shots and can cover a wider are to shut down ambushes. I am leaning toward the pioneers over the Pak38's because they're more flexible, but again I am worried about running into French heavy armor. This list also brings me back down to that 4 platoon problem.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc8Gi8d8mc36dssHhkeXb7k-QMKScWIlJCO1_OegUNYLZbtykgQYmRpcM6IYMyG8ICxVmUfGZxDZ_nuZHFdSnrofsN-O1FCVrc1e5SUa9VAD8BL0b43-QCX57N4D3lRJ_IRQq9HjRnACFO/s1600/guderian.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc8Gi8d8mc36dssHhkeXb7k-QMKScWIlJCO1_OegUNYLZbtykgQYmRpcM6IYMyG8ICxVmUfGZxDZ_nuZHFdSnrofsN-O1FCVrc1e5SUa9VAD8BL0b43-QCX57N4D3lRJ_IRQq9HjRnACFO/s1600/guderian.jpg" height="484" width="640" /></a></div>
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We know what Guderian would do...</div>
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All in all, I'm still undecided. There are some tough choices to make here. Luckily I know that if I am facing French tanks then they also won't be starting with a lot on the table in half-on-half-off missions. I'm worried about British arty as usual (at least there isn't any American arty in EW!). Maybe I'll leave it to the dice gods and roll off on what list to bring. Any suggestions are welcome.<br />
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As always, a friendly reminder to follow me on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/piflamesofwar" target="_blank">@piflamesofwar</a><br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01566457583865121822noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5752705221534094802.post-16883853260086977742013-08-17T12:16:00.000-07:002013-08-17T12:16:25.602-07:00EW Batrep: Japanese vs. Afrika Korps, REMATCH!!!After a <a href="http://dminusone.blogspot.com/2013/08/ew-batrep-japanese-cavalry-vs-afrika.html" target="_blank">shameful showing</a> against the inaugural battle with the Japanese at Brothers Grim Games and Hobbies in Selden, NY, my Afrika Korps spent a lot of time sitting in the corner thinking about what they'd done, and how they had disappointed me. I was still searching for my first win with them (<a href="http://dminusone.blogspot.com/2013/06/battle-report-early-war-dak-vs-french.html" target="_blank">remember the nail-biter against the French?</a>) and felt that today would be the day that the DAK turned things around. I met the Japanese on the field of battle for a rematch. We rolled randomly for the mission and got <i>Breakthrough</i>.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb0VSYIffVz7a1TvtqPZ70shTAL9ZPIUwe-U_paikGRBkfaKRtkQv_3OnSi2l-CNELyXI-IVd_2BR77hnMrP4swzNU2rTfbhTGpIBFEOALttAM0VtyrJLb2co06Rd9-OTjLqCxnU1LTwvN/s1600/IMG_1617.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb0VSYIffVz7a1TvtqPZ70shTAL9ZPIUwe-U_paikGRBkfaKRtkQv_3OnSi2l-CNELyXI-IVd_2BR77hnMrP4swzNU2rTfbhTGpIBFEOALttAM0VtyrJLb2co06Rd9-OTjLqCxnU1LTwvN/s1600/IMG_1617.JPG" height="480" width="640" /></a></div>
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After deployment</div>
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We were each using the same armies as last time. I'd rather have Panzer IV's but that list doesn't allow the Panzerjagers, so I'm stuck with firepower 4+. Here is my list (1200 points)</div>
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HQ - Panzer III</div>
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3 Panzer III's</div>
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4 Panzerjagers</div>
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Pioneers (two flamethrowers)</div>
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2 8-rads (which are 6-rad models because 6-rads are radical! I'll show myself out...)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2hCeNKE2ut0-yQt4najQcaxV9YXWrEdb5WAonj3cOeLIrBcnN_9VzrKNtUrHRbL3flf5JM44Jwr3kw3_kaY1Bm28ojSjttNyL1FIoBAmgneiJFuUOXB4L91Argnn1FO8CEx-rBmp-dWMH/s1600/IMG_1614.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2hCeNKE2ut0-yQt4najQcaxV9YXWrEdb5WAonj3cOeLIrBcnN_9VzrKNtUrHRbL3flf5JM44Jwr3kw3_kaY1Bm28ojSjttNyL1FIoBAmgneiJFuUOXB4L91Argnn1FO8CEx-rBmp-dWMH/s1600/IMG_1614.JPG" height="480" width="640" /></a></div>
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My opponent's army:</div>
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HQ - 1iC and 2iC, 2iC has a super banner</div>
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Cavalry Platoon</div>
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Cavalry Platoon</div>
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Cavalry Platoon</div>
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3 Type-89 Tanks (armor 1 all around, with a AT 5, FP 4+ main gun)</div>
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2 Tankettes, can't remember number designation (armor 1 all around, with MG's)</div>
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2 37mm guns (AT 6, FP 4+)</div>
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Each Cav/Inf platoon consists of 5 teams, and the platoon commanders (and 1iC and 2iC) are sword teams: hit on 2+ in assault, tank assault 1)</div>
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Deploying with the <i>Mobile Reserves</i> rule he left the tankettes off the table to start the game. He wisely positioned his AT guns in such a way as to prevent me from lifting Gone-to-Ground on them on turn 1 (something to watch for in the <i>Breakthrough </i>deployment setup). He left one cavalry platoon ready to make for the objective in the woods right away, lest my pioneers arrive uncontested and dig in.</div>
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Speaking of which, I chose to keep my pioneers in reserve. They'd be too vulnerable to enemy fire if they tried to wade across the table. I just had to hope that I didn't get reserves until later in the game. Which, let's be honest everyone, isn't it always the way that reserves arrive too late? My tanks lined up for a turn 1 assault against one infantry platoon, and the 6-rads and Panzerjagers chose to hide and wait for their opportune moment.</div>
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Move, assault, consolidate, behind the hill...that's the plan </div>
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Salvage your honor!</div>
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I opened the game by moving my tanks against the infantry. Surprisingly I killed one with MG fire, which only left one valid target for the assault. I ensured that I would not draw defensive fire from the AT guns. After killing one team my opponent wisely decided to pull back.</div>
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One tank can't quite hide all the way</div>
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On his turn he moved one cavalry platoon down to threaten the position of the 8-rads and Panzerjagers. I forgot that cavalry also get to make a move in the shooting phase if they pass a skill test. Japanese cavalry, being veteran, are super fast. He also moved his 2iC with the super banner over to where my main thrust was concentrating. </div>
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Another cavalry platoon moved toward the objectives, staying outside of 10" of the board edge (infantry move + flamethrower).</div>
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One of his AT guns could see a tank, so he let fly. In a continuing theme I rolled a two to save, but he only succeeded in bailing the tank.<br />
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His AT guns had fallen into my trap! Now that one of them wasn't gone to ground it was time to strike! </div>
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Oh...</div>
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My biggest problem with the Panzer III rears its ugly head. I want the FP 3+ of the Panzer IV because my tanks are, you know, moving around a lot. I don't need RoF 3. Anyway, the combined fire of 4 Panzer III's, 4 Panzerjagers, and two 8-rads results in 1 dead gun. And everyone fails stormtrooper which leads to:</div>
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Yep, another bailed tank and the enemy infantry within range to assault. Japanese infantry are deadly because they'll stick around forever, and they also ignore the first hit in defensive fire for the purposes of pinning down the assault. In this case two teams made it into contact, with the 2iC daisy-chaining his super banner. So my only options were to kill the assaulting teams to a man, or lose the bailed-out tank, which by the way was my 1iC because the AT gun hit all three times needing 5+.<br />
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To the credit of my tankers, they finally grew a pair and pulled off a successful assault (even with the 1iC bailed and therefore unable to re-roll checks). </div>
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On my turn 3 I began rolling for reserves, hoping they wouldn't arrive to be stranded against the cavalry. So let me amend my earlier statement: reserves don't always come in late; they simply come in at the least opportune time. I rolled a 5, and my reserves came in. I gave the pioneers as much cover as possible in the woods, but I knew that they were in serious trouble.<br />
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The main part of my army prepped for an assault on the remnants of the infantry platoon that had just assaulted me, as well as the AT gun platoon. I left the 8-rads in a position to either MG the cavalry threatening my pioneers or MG the gun platoon in order to pin them down.<br />
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My panzers and panzerjagers failed to pin the gun platoon, so I made the difficult call to use the MG's of the 8-rads to pin down the guns. I could still win the game if I lost the pioneers, but I needed to do everything in my power to not lose my tanks.<br />
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I moved in for the assault of the infantry and AT gun platoons, shrugged off the defensive fire from the AT gun, and pulled off another successful assault...<br />
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...although it took me a while (that's the AT gun commander below).<br />
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The 2iC's super banner kept the assault going for a while, but I eventually won out. Now on my opponent's turn 3 he was going to get revenge by targeting my pioneers.<br />
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The other cavalry platoon gives up chasing the panzerjagers</div>
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The assault against the pioneers nearly failed. His shooting was unable to kill any pioneer teams, and he wasn't able to pin them either. I was going to get 6 shots in defensive fire, and I hit 5 times! However, as a reminder, the Japanese ignore the first hit in defensive fire for the purposes of throwing the assault back. He made every save, and so the cavalry came in swinging. He only killed two teams, but I failed motivation to counter, which meant that my pioneers were run down by the cavalry.</div>
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I saw an opportunity to get rid of the 2iC and his super banner, and to avenge the pioneers. Between the 8-rads and the Panzer III's I had 22 MG shots to fire at the 2iC if necessary.<br />
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My Panzer III's hit the 2iC nine times, and there was no chance of a warrior save. I told my opponent, who was rolling very well to this point, that if his 2iC survived this turn then I would forfeit the game.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnYVLe8ae8i88UNZPTm_ZwrHXVnRhO-lxLsiqB68q5Do7RFOTk4ZS5BsReCtYVp7L800f16PQSEvDFrqsmEHozwVj3aQgSXsLLY-MtLV12Fb-HzI55YLRxlZF8VEUY-WaM50c1cimnK6-r/s1600/IMG_1641.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnYVLe8ae8i88UNZPTm_ZwrHXVnRhO-lxLsiqB68q5Do7RFOTk4ZS5BsReCtYVp7L800f16PQSEvDFrqsmEHozwVj3aQgSXsLLY-MtLV12Fb-HzI55YLRxlZF8VEUY-WaM50c1cimnK6-r/s1600/IMG_1641.JPG" height="480" width="640" /></a></div>
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I just barely killed him! His saves were incredible. I then stormtroopered to get out of assault range of the infantry that just killed the pioneers. In his next turn he moved the Type-89's through the woods (bogging one) and moved his 1iC and the infantry platoon out to launch an assault against the panzers. I hadn't taken into account the possibility of the 1iC daisy-chaining the infantry, thereby bringing them into assault.<br />
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The tankettes shot at my 8-rads, but I successfully disengaged and did so in a way that would allow the 8-rads to defensive fire against the coming assault.<br />
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Again, these tanks can't make a save</div>
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In a shocking turn of events my opponent failed his tank terror tests, even being fearless and getting a re-roll! It seemed like it was the only time this game he rolled under a 3.</div>
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In my next turn the Panzerjagers and one Panzer III kill one tankette and bail the other. The remaining three Panzer III's (by the way, protected ammo is huge) killed one Type-89 and bailed another. The 8-rads were reorganizing and couldn't move, but they could fire on the infantry on the hill, and killed one.</div>
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My opponent now prepped for two assaults. One infantry platoon decided to move against the panzerjagers. Meanwhile, the 1iC and the remnants of another cav platoon prepared to once again try and assault the Panzer III's.<br />
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His shooting was moderately successful, as another roll of a 2 for a save against the Type-89's led to a bailed out result.<br />
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Some success in assault was had against the panzerjagers, who continued my force's tradition of not being able to roll saves. One was bailed and another destroyed, but I elected to break off rather than risk further damage. On the hill against the 1iC my tankers needed every re-roll possible from my 1iC to keep the fight going, but eventually the assault was beaten back, leaving the Japanese 1iC as the only survivor.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQDEzXluPVdB_aThE-mZodmWXN53pAhPubJ4VJJs2zGap9jdceG8cyumLZ9yEfufbWyWIeIIykvrHa-V6aTAHWK4BEBqonPx6WPsm2z1i9hvrip87sk5KpCboW-l-M395u4z9TJNk5EMYI/s1600/IMG_1650.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQDEzXluPVdB_aThE-mZodmWXN53pAhPubJ4VJJs2zGap9jdceG8cyumLZ9yEfufbWyWIeIIykvrHa-V6aTAHWK4BEBqonPx6WPsm2z1i9hvrip87sk5KpCboW-l-M395u4z9TJNk5EMYI/s1600/IMG_1650.JPG" height="480" width="640" /></a></div>
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Also note that the tankette had moved around to attempt a lucky shot against my 8-rads</div>
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Panzerjagers fall back while they're still above half strength</div>
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On my next turn my Panzer III's did their job and shredded the Type-89's... </div>
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My tanks actually killed other tanks!</div>
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...while the 8-rads tried to shoot up the 1iC.</div>
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They couldn't shoot him, and so were forced to assault.<br />
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After a couple of agonizing and nerve-wracking assault rounds I was finally able to kill the 1iC.<br />
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It took three rounds of assault</div>
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His company commanders were dead, and his only troops left were two teams from one of the cavalry platoons. For most armies, this means an automatic loss. But the Japanese have a rule that allows them to keep fighting (although I believe it's only for one turn and his troops basically HAVE to assault).</div>
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It was a valiant effort, but both teams were eventually killed. I had won, but I needed to kill literally every single team on the board.</div>
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The Japanese are a tough foe. Don't underestimate them, especially in assault. They are one of the best assaulting armies out there right now. I don't know how strong the cavalry list is (although it's very cool), but I foresee the Japanese infantry company, backed by some tanks and guns, being an immovable rock on the battlefield.</div>
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I think my opponent didn't have enough maneuverable AT assets to counter my tanks. I was able to pick off his guns and then his tanks piecemeal. If my tanks can start rolling saves against AT 5 and AT 6 then I might have a decent little force on my hands.</div>
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As always, please follow me on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/piflamesofwar" target="_blank">@piflamesofwar</a></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01566457583865121822noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5752705221534094802.post-16148018222269283162013-08-14T09:49:00.000-07:002013-08-14T09:49:19.442-07:00Battle Report: US TD's vs. British Assault CompanyI wanted to give my Germans a little break from the tabletop and do something fun with my Americans. The Hellcat is my favorite vehicle of World War Two, and so I set out to design a Hellcat TD list from <i>Blood, Guts, and Glory</i> that didn't include Patton. Frankly, I can see an advantage to being able to defend part of the time, as a Hellcat company can be pretty fragile on the attack.<br />
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My opponent was very sporting and went along with my request to play <a href="http://www.wwpd.net/p/downloads.html" target="_blank">Blind Domination</a>, which seems like an awesome mission that I've never been able to convince anyone to play. We were in for a treat, as this would turn into one of the most entertaining battles we had ever played.<br />
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The battlefield</div>
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We set up the 12 Domination points with the goal of each army having to secure at least one point from the opposing army's board edge in order to win the game. If you'll look at the above picture:</div>
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Each bridge was worth 2 points.</div>
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The center of the village in the bottom left was worth 2 points.</div>
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The hill overlooking the village in the top right was worth two points.</div>
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One-point markers were placed in the top left and bottom right fields.</div>
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Having set up the battlefield we prepared our armies for the coming fight. I was running a TD list that prized speed and maneuverability over durability. I wasn't fielding any infantry, and only one vehicle had a front armor greater than 4 (the OP Sherman!). Here was my army:</div>
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HQ - 1iC and 2iC in M20 scout cars</div>
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4 Hellcats</div>
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2 Hellcats</div>
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Two patrols of TD Recon (so no mortar jeeps)</div>
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4 Stuarts</div>
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6 Trained Priests</div>
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4 Veteran 155's</div>
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Trained AA Halftracks</div>
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AOP</div>
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Seeing this army reminds me that I have to go back and do my mud effect on the Hellcats and Stuarts, as they were painted before I <a href="http://dminusone.blogspot.com/2013/04/weathering-with-airbrush.html" target="_blank">discovered that method</a>. I really wish Battlefront would post more painting videos since they're a great resource, but apparently the guy doing those is one of their busiest employees in Malaysia so I'm not holding my breath. </div>
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My opponent was running a Confident Veteran British Assault Company, slightly different from <a href="http://dminusone.blogspot.com/2013/07/overlord-batrep-21-panzerdivision-vs.html" target="_blank">his past iterations</a> of this army:</div>
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HQ</div>
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Platoon with PIAT</div>
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Platoon with PIAT</div>
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2 Commando Sections with PIATs</div>
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3 Universal Carriers</div>
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3 Trained Crocs</div>
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4 Trained M10 Achilles</div>
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8-gun Naval Artillery (so single template, re-rolling misses, AT 6 FP 1+)</div>
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Next we had to make our orders sheet. In Blind Domination you follow a procedure whereby you pre-assign where troops will enter the table. On Turn 1 your Recce and observers arrive. On Turn 2 you get two platoons plus an independent team. On Turn 3 everything else comes in. There is no moving at the double until Turn 6, and the only special rule used is Meeting Engagement. I forgot to take a picture of my opponent's order sheet, but here is mine:</div>
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Forgot to mark my 1iC so I rolled a D6 and got section 5.</div>
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With that, it was time to begin.</div>
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Another view of the board as my opponent moves the uni. carriers onto the board </div>
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One of my recce units arrives and stares down the carriers</div>
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Fast forward to the top of turn 3, and my Priests are now staring a lot of AT assets in the face...not ideal.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg06cwT05096WbkOa_wyCP-hZ_kc2rxwyS3zeEC_vmIhW1mxD0B2jfxn9JuKxV1atHGTjQ4bewDHBTK_NqTTIChXb3k91Fm9b0DH_ayFi8hK5KMbJ0inhRdRR7xFFx-hVLO1KuN2J0GuOq5/s1600/Garrett+3+008.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg06cwT05096WbkOa_wyCP-hZ_kc2rxwyS3zeEC_vmIhW1mxD0B2jfxn9JuKxV1atHGTjQ4bewDHBTK_NqTTIChXb3k91Fm9b0DH_ayFi8hK5KMbJ0inhRdRR7xFFx-hVLO1KuN2J0GuOq5/s1600/Garrett+3+008.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></div>
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His naval artillery spotter is on the edge of these woods</div>
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The Priests can only bail a M10 </div>
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And massed .50cal fire only bails two of the carriers. The OP Sherman bogs trying to get into position. </div>
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Two Priests fall victim to the M10's... </div>
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While the naval arty and Crocs take care of the M20's of one security section</div>
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I do the bulk of my damage in Turn 4, when a plethora of targets presented themselves. An M8 greyhound from the recce platoon near the Priests takes down an M10, while the Stuarts kill and bail another. I decide not to combine my batteries and instead drop a Priest bombardment on the already bailed M10 on the hill, which destroys it.</div>
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The M8 greyhound from the other recce platoon bags two universal carriers (they failed to disengage) and the .50cal on the OP Sherman takes out the other one.<br />
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Finally, a Time-on-Target bombardment from the 155's kill a Croc.<br />
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My Turn 4 shooting was pretty devastating, and part of me believed that I just about had this thing wrapped up. As an aside, the 2-team Hellcat platoon completely whiffed on the M10's, so I was very lucky that the rest of my army was there to pick up the slack. However, in true British fashion, my opponent's forces began to slowly but surely whittle down my fragile units, setting up a truly exciting game.</div>
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His commandos moved out to exact revenge on the greyhound. They bailed and then assaulted it. </div>
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A Croc nabs a Hellcat on an improbable shot! (up on the hill)</div>
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The other commando section races ahead to capture the bridge </div>
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While the M10 takes down a Stuart</div>
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Naval artillery nabs an AA gun </div>
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My TD's are forced to pop to counter the threat posed by the commandos</div>
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My fire in Turn 5 was ineffective all around, with no commandos falling to massed MG and .50cal fire, the Stuarts completely whiffing on the remaining M10, and a combined artillery bombardment which succeeded only in bailing a Croc and killing one commando team.</div>
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Just a bail...</div>
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Meanwhile, he was systematically eliminating my units, piece by little piece. </div>
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My Sherman had bogged again, and was captured by the commandos </div>
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The greyhound falls to a Croc, while a Stuart is bailed by the M10 </div>
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The other Croc takes a shot downtown and bails a Priest</div>
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His naval artillery almost made me pay for careless movement. He had the artillery platoon commander, two hellcats, and an AA gun under the template. Thankfully (for me) he needed three attempts to range in and I rolled a 6 to bail on the only Hellcat that was hit. But the AA platoon was wiped out.</div>
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A jeep also fell to the infantry platoon they had shot at last turn, but they passed their platoon morale</div>
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Bit by bit I'm coming undone. With only two Priests active I'm forced to smoke the lead Croc. I move the remaining Hellcat from the 2-team platoon to take shots at the M10, while the other Hellcats scurry out of sight.</div>
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Smoky smoke </div>
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Hellcat does its job, while the MG fire from the Stuarts is ineffective</div>
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To be honest, the next couple of turns were a blur as he and I tried to set up our last-ditch efforts. I had a sneaky move where I sent my 2iC on a wild ride to claim the 2 points on the hilltop with the dead M10. My opponent used his Crocs to keep killing the Priests until only one remained. Meanwhile, although his naval artillery failed to damage one of my 155's, they stayed pinned for the rest of the game! So from turns 6-13 the 155's just sat there while the rest of my force held on for dear life!</div>
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My opponent tried to move his commandos out to threaten the rear of my Priest battery, but MG fire from the Hellcats and three recce jeeps (all that was left of my two original patrols) knocked them below half, and they fled.</div>
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The eagerness of the Crocs to get at my Priests left the side armor of one tank exposed, and I took my shots, killing one of them. The remaining tank crew was made of brave stuff however, and didn't flee.<br />
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His other infantry platoon moves up to threaten the two points in the village, and not a single stand falls to all of my available MG fire!<br />
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They move up</div>
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Not one stand is killed</div>
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A Stuart falls to a PIAT as the infantry advance to set up an assault. The Stuarts pass their morale check to stay in the game, and the platoon fails their tank terror check! In the next turn they would be run off the board my massed MG and .50cal fire.</div>
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Over the last couple of turns the remaining Croc killed the last Hellcat of the small platoon, and forced the Priest battery to make yet another platoon morale check when the last remaining Priest was destroyed. Luckily for me they held their nerve.</div>
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Unfortunately I was so engrossed in the game that I forgot to take pictures of the end. His 1iC was able to spot on the far Hellcat platoon (for the naval artillery) and despite needing 6's to range in managed to kill both of them, sending that platoon off the board! I was down three platoon out of my 8, and he was taking company morale checks.</div>
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My left flank was now held by the always-pinned 155's and three jeeps. Yet once again the recce jeeps came through. Their MG fire didn't just force a morale check, but killed to a man every single team left in that platoon (I think it was four teams at that point). My 2iC, darting around PIAT shots, slowly drained the other Commando platoon to the point where they too failed to stick around.</div>
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Eventually, after several successful company morale checks, my opponent failed at the start of turn 14. His remaining teams on the board: 1 Croc, his 1iC, and the naval artillery observer.</div>
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The board. The AA gun, Hellcat, and Sherman near the woods should have fire-fluff on them </div>
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My right flank </div>
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The goats of the game. Pinned for 7 turns.</div>
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This game, for me, came down to being able to maneuver MG fire to where I needed it. As for my opponent, his infantry simply could not reach out and touch the mobile elements that were damaging them, and his supporting cast just didn't kill enough of my stuff in time. Each of us had decent dice (I failed one of maybe seven platoon morale checks, although I would have liked my 155's to unpin) and he probably failed half of his platoon morale checks. It's just that I was forcing him to make such checks at an alarming rate. </div>
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It was an awesome game. Honestly, I think this is the best, most fun game of Flames of War I've ever played. I encourage everyone to give Blind Domination a try, it puts a crazy twist on deployment, which is already so crucial in Flames of War.</div>
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My recce patrols were the MVP's. Between the 170 points for those two patrols they accounted for the universal carriers, an M10, the commando platoon, and another infantry platoon. For my opponent, he named the lone M10 that hung on far longer than it should have as his MVP. It killed two Priests and a Stuart, but more importantly held up an inordinate amount of my resources. </div>
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As always, please follow me on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/piflamesofwar" target="_blank">@piflamesofwar</a></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01566457583865121822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5752705221534094802.post-73886063570680098872013-08-08T08:51:00.000-07:002013-08-08T08:51:22.088-07:00EW Batrep: Japanese Cavalry vs. Afrika KorpsThat's right, the new Japanese are making their debut at Brother's Grim Games and Hobbies. Flipping the bird to historical accuracy I would be fielding my Early War Afrika Korps against this new enemy. They have a lot of cool special rules that we knew we would probably screw up at one point or another, but who cares? We were each fielding 1200-point forces in preparation for an Early War tournament later this month. We randomly rolled for the mission and got Cauldron! I tend to like this mission for some perverse reason.<br />
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Anyway, on with the report!<br />
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After deployment, read on!</div>
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I was running the Light Tank Company out of <i>Hellfire and Back</i>. "Light" is a very relative term in this instance, since the main tanks are Panzer III's (represented here by Panzer IV's, proxying, I know, cut us some slack). I would have preferred to run a Panzer IV company, but they do not have the option to tank Panzerjagers, which are simply too good to not include in EW German forces.</div>
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My force:</div>
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HQ - 1 Panzer III</div>
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3 Panzer III's</div>
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4 Panzerjagers</div>
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Pioneers w/ 6 teams and trucks</div>
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2 8-rads (represented by 6-rads because 6-rads are cooler)</div>
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And now, the might of Imperial Japan:</div>
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HQ - 1iC and 2iC (2iC has the banner)</div>
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3 Cavalry Platoons of 4 large bases each</div>
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2 light AT guns (don't know the exact name, but RoF 3, AT 6)</div>
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3 Light Tanks (again, don't know the exact name, but armor 1 all around and AT 5)</div>
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2 Tankettes with MG's</div>
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I believe the banner allows a platoon within command distance to automatically pass motivation tests (but not morale tests).</div>
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I chose to deploy my Panzer III's and pioneers. My rationale was that the pioneers would be most vulnerable if they had to move onto the board from reserve while in their trucks, and that the 8-rads could speed onto the board and contest objectives right away. My opponent chose to deploy one cavalry platoon (dismounted at the start), his AT guns, and the light tanks. I rolled a "1" on random deployment for the pioneers and a "2" for the Panzer III's. It would mark the start of rolling a lot of 1's and 2's.</div>
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After his Immediate Ambush, and defender gets the first turn! D'oh! </div>
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Getting sneaky by staying out of Line of Sight. The "red" bases are flamethrower teams.</div>
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I wanted to get my pioneers in a position to assault his tanks, so I deployed them behind a building that blocked Line of Sight, which got me pretty close. The 1iC was deployed with them initially in order to provide a re-roll on any failed tank terror tests.</div>
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On my opponent's turn 1 he moved his tanks toward my pioneers and Panzer III's. Their shots at my 1iC all missed, even with their "hip shot" re-rolls (a Japanese special rule). However, his AT guns (AT 6 and needing 5+ to hit over 16", which in turn made me armor 4) destroyed one Panzer and bailed another! I rolled a 1 and a 2 on the only two hits...</div>
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I don't get reserves, but decide to make a move while my opponent's tanks are within reach. The pioneers move out to assault the light tanks, and my remaining Panzer III's and 1iC move into a position to soften them up beforehand.</div>
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One of the Japanese tanks is bailed by the Panzer III's, which is inconsequential because bailed Japanese tanks still fight. The flamethrowers do their jobs however, scoring hits on all three tanks, ensuring that there will be no defensive fire. They pass tank terror on their own, and score four hits in the assault.</div>
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My opponent, repeating his success in the shooting phase, passes every single save. They pass motivation to counter-attack since they are within range of the banner, and wipe out the pioneers.<br />
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Ouch.</div>
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On my opponent's turn he shifts his forces over toward my only remaining teams, but no shots are fired.</div>
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Chalking up my dead teams/platoons up to this point to bad luck, I moved out and engaged the Light Tanks, and actually managed to destroy one. </div>
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Finally....</div>
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On his next turn he moves his cavalry up so that they will we able to launch an assault if I don't move next turn. In addition his AT guns, which now need 6's to hit, kill one more tank and bail another in the Panzer III platoon! For the entire game I couldn't roll a save. I could try and not get hit but if any of his shots found their mark they went right through. The platoon passed their morale test but needed the 1iC re-roll.</div>
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On my next turn I got my automatic reserve, and double-timed the 8-rads onto the far objective, which would force him to separate his units. The Panzer III's pulled back and MG-ed the cavalry, actually managing to kill a whole bunch of teams, including the 1iC (he lived on the warrior save). That platoon stuck around, but was seriously weakened.<br />
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In his turn he's forced to swing back and cover the far objective. I can't contest on this turn because I double-timed last turn.<br />
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My remaining reserves show up, and I'm suddenly feeling confident again. The middle of the game dragged on a bit, so I'll let the pictures do the talking:</div>
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Panzers knock out a Light Tank </div>
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And the Panzerjagers bail another. They pass motivation. </div>
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After re-mounting, shooting, then being bailed again, this tank commander once again passes morale.</div>
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8-rads MG the weakened Cav platoon to death. Those two Cav teams are the 1iC and 2iC</div>
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The duel of suckitude continues </div>
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That's a lot of Japanese </div>
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Killed the 2iC in defensive fire but...</div>
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Ok...I'm just never going to assault with my Germans ever again because they suck at it. It never works. I can't remember when I last passed a test to counterattack, and every time I go into assault and have to avoid rolling a 1, I roll a bunch of 1's. This 1iC was a sword team: tank assault 1. The 8-rad was bailed on my roll of a 1, and I failed motivation to counterattack.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk-aMm9_Z0YMaivTwRe6nT4wFhv2IzD08vgczmJ5geqKan0DmSGogglquq9JE_ZH3LhSKqRNurJm0FS3Nx_Fbwmz5j5cXRXCsDNz75YL82k74wUagk4fGbli_jq3HN8_MtCqC75aoRQJbF/s1600/EW+DiCarlo+024.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk-aMm9_Z0YMaivTwRe6nT4wFhv2IzD08vgczmJ5geqKan0DmSGogglquq9JE_ZH3LhSKqRNurJm0FS3Nx_Fbwmz5j5cXRXCsDNz75YL82k74wUagk4fGbli_jq3HN8_MtCqC75aoRQJbF/s1600/EW+DiCarlo+024.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></div>
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The 8-rad bails a tankette... </div>
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...but knows that it's doomed. </div>
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I have to move to stay within 16" of an objective </div>
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Still can't kill that one light tank</div>
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He managed to assault the 8-rad and destroy it, leaving me with just the two Panzer III's and the Panzerjagers. At this point I made a rash move to try and steal the win. The Panzer III's and 8-rads moved out to fire on the AT guns. Three main-gun shots found their marks, but nobody passed a firepower test. Still, they were pinned down, so I went in for the assault. My 1iC was destroyed by defensive fire (again, couldn't roll a save all game). The other tank killed one gun, but was killed in the counterattack. With that it was a 5-2 win to the Japanese.</div>
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I should have tried to have the Panzer III's and Panzerjagers kill the remaining Light Tank, then set up an assault after that, but I would have relied on a stormtrooper roll to get my Panzerjagers out of line of sight of the AT guns after such a move, and I did not have any faith in my dice. </div>
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Assault is the most random phase of Flames of War, and I'm serious when I say that I'm going to avoid it like the plague. Every time I send vehicles into an assault my dice go to shit. Every time I send infantry into assault they get shredded. And passing motivation tests to counter-attack? Forget it...</div>
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I think I'm going to have to find a list that combines Panzer IV's and Panzerjagers. I don't like the 4+ firepower of the Panzer III. RoF 3 is nice, but most of the time my tanks are moving. Panzer IV's can also fire smoke and conduct artillery bombardments. </div>
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Don't forget to follow me on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/piflamesofwar" target="_blank">@piflamesofwar </a></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01566457583865121822noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5752705221534094802.post-70210934026567606582013-08-01T05:07:00.000-07:002013-08-01T05:07:33.310-07:00The Tale of Claus von SlausOk, what follows is a bit of a departure from my normal blogging, but it's appropriate with the close of the WWPD Overlord Campaign. For the campaign I mainly played with a force I'd never used before, and found myself more attached to them than any tabletop army in a long time. The 21. Panzerdivision struck me as having the right kind of balance between competitiveness, fluff, and personal play style.<br />
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For a while now I have playfully called my German commander for any armored force Claus von Slaus, a German of Eastern European descent with an inferiority complex that drives him to deeds of insane bravery. This WWPD Overlord campaign really formed his identity, and that's what I hope to share with you. And so, ladies and gentlemen (who am I kidding, gentlemen) I present to you the saga of Claus von Slaus, unit commander of indeterminate rank of the 21. Panzerdivision:<br />
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Yes, I numbered him "zero"</div>
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Another battle, and another bloody victory for Claus von Slaus. With the enemy pulling back, von Slaus was finally able to assess his losses in this last, desperate struggle to beat back the British. The road to victory had been littered with the wrecks of his once mighty tanks, and the bodies of his once living tankers.<br />
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He thought back to the <a href="http://dminusone.blogspot.com/2013/07/battle-report-21-panzerdivision-vs.html" target="_blank">first Normandy action</a> his men had faced. They had been called upon to repulse the earliest British assaults, just back of the beaches. Where others had failed, they had succeeded through cunning and skill. He had even learned to use the enemy's weapons against their former masters! So great was that first triumph that von Slaus allowed himself a rare moment of optimism. That day was not carried by the arrogant, fanatical men of the SS, but by the humble bravery and resourcefulness of his 21. Panzerdivision.<br />
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Not all of whom survived, despite the victory</div>
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He had led his platoon commanders in a textbook ambush of the over-confident British, breaking their will with one devastating salvo. They had more firepower, they had more equipment, but they didn't reckon with the skill and courage of von Slaus' men.<br />
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One victory can be a fluke, but when success is repeated all critics must accept the facts. Once again the 21. Panzerdivision was <a href="http://dminusone.blogspot.com/2013/07/overlord-batrep-21-panzerdivision-vs.html" target="_blank">called upon to beat back a British thrust</a>, and again Monty's eel-eaters were thrown back in disarray. Yet the cost of victory had begun to climb.<br />
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Many brave men were sent home in caskets to their grieving families, if their bodies could even be recovered at all. Even his loyal, if foolhardy, second-in-command Hans von Hansenhof fell to his over-eagerness to destroy the foe. Those who had survived had stared flamethrowers, naval artillery, and Death himself in the face and lived to tell the victorious tale. They would ensure that the memory of their fallen comrades lived on. Skill and courage won the first bout. Sacrifice was also needed in the second.<br />
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Claus von Slaus had always held a grudge against the other officers in the German armed forces, but not without cause. Where his men had fought the British to a standstill, the best that could be expected under the circumstances, those officers promoted ahead of him in the past were now running for their lives against the Americans. It fell to von Slaus to take his force and <a href="http://dminusone.blogspot.com/2013/07/overlord-batrep-21-panzerdivision-vs_26.html" target="_blank">try to link up</a> with his beleaguered comrades. Rushed into battle, von Slaus had no idea what awaited him. Outside the little village of Ville de Petite, his column ran headlong into American tanks and artillery. Several desperate charges were launched, but his men simply could not break through. In an instance of pure despair, von Slaus' noble pioneers were caught in the open and suffered the full weight of American artillery.<br />
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The tragedy befalling his tankers, and the smoke fumes in his damaged vehicle, brought tears of sadness and frustration to his eyes. He was so close and yet so far to seizing the objectives! Reluctantly he was forced to pull back. The link-up had failed.<br />
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So close...von Slaus is at the very bottom of the picture</div>
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In the final days of the Allied push to run the Germans out of Normandy, Claus von Slaus was once again <a href="http://dminusone.blogspot.com/2013/07/6th-and-final-overlord-batrep-21.html" target="_blank">called upon to lead his tanks</a> in one final attempt to deny Normandy to the Allies. A sizable British infantry force with much armored support had been spotted outside of a key crossroads. von Slaus was ordered to seize the high ground outside of the village to deny that avenue of approach to the enemy. He knew that failure meant the destruction of his beloved force and the disgrace of his reputation.<br />
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Well defended, and well supported, but it had to be taken!</div>
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His men...his brave, doomed men. They gave their lives in one last effort to achieve victory against their mighty foes. Through the thunder of artillery and the whine of anti-tank shells they advanced, never pausing in their attack. One by one their radios fell silent. von Slaus found himself in a swirling maelstrom of destruction, with all sorts of British vehicles and guns falling prey to his fury.<br />
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His personal tally was 1 Achilles, 2 Carriers, and several AT and Artillery pieces</div>
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All along the attack approach, one could find the charred hulks of his tanks, the last remnants of a once-proud force.<br />
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And yet, calling these men a "once-proud" force does them a disservice, as they remained proud. Victory was won despite their losses. The near destruction of Claus von Slaus' last Normandy command had still resulted in the denial of British objectives, and that was the best that could be hoped for. The Allies may pound their way to victory eventually, but today, if only for today, the field belonged to Claus von Slaus, and the last few, brave men of his command.<br />
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Nothing says "bravery" like a platoon morale die roll for the win!</div>
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Claus von Slaus would not survive the war. Retreating into Germany he was given command of a Panzer unit trying desperately to halt the Soviets. One day, mounting the last operable tank under his command, von Slaus drove onto a bridge and covered the retreat of his men to American lines, where they were able to surrender. Nobody lived to record the details of his last, heroic exploits, but members of the village where he met his fate describe a panzer tank exploding with such tremendous force as to demolish the bridge it was standing on, denying its use to the communist hordes.<br />
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Statistics on his infantry and support elements are hard to come by, but the casualties of his tankers were well-recorded. In the final analysis the tankers under the command of Claus von Slaus suffered a 68% casualty rate (calculated by assessing how many of my tanks were destroyed/bailed at the end of each game).Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01566457583865121822noreply@blogger.com4