I once again moved forward on my left and center and targeted th...
I once again moved forward on my left and center and targeted the Russian tanks in those areas that could not retreat but only dinged each of them - 1 hit each. A Russian center ARTY BOMBARD killed off one of my Elite Panzers in the center on 6 shots - ouch. This would hurt my ARMOR ASSAULT attack in the center. I then lost one of my panzer ordered off that card (along with its 4 shots and possibly 8) to an AMBUSH. I did kill off a tank in the center and on my left and the game was tied 2 to 2.
Then the next three turns saw a Russian TFH - Ger CA -- TFH Russ TFH.
Two panzers were killed on the first Russ TFH and gave them a 4 to 2 lead. But my nine order followup TFH eliminated two Tanks on my left, an Inf and two Tanks in the center and a Tank on my right - giving me 6 medals for that turn and a 8 to 4 Ger lead.
The next Russian TFH only gave them 6 orders and of the shots they took, a number of key rolls were missed leaving me with some weak panzers on the board but still able to strike back.
I then increased my lead to 10 to 4 which went to 10 to 6 (after I lost an Inf an panzer).
On my T 5, I picked up the last 2 medals for the win.
I think the Russians had a real chance in this one. Even after the German center ARMOR ASSAULT. With back to back TFHs - a few more orders on the second of these and a few more hits, and they might have turned the corner.
This one was not even close. I pushed forward on my left and in ...
This one was not even close. I pushed forward on my left and in the center. On my first turn I only got 2 hits - both on tank units. But then I played DHQ on my left and ARMOR ASSAULT in the center on T 2. I eliminated three center tanks and an Inf and sprang out to a 4 to 0 lead. The Russian counter to this was less than effective as they could only kill off one unit - a panzer in the center. Then on T 4 I finished off a tank and Inf on my left and a tank and Inf in the center to take a commanding 8 to 1 lead. The Russian center had pretty much ceased to exist other than the two arty units. The Russians managed one last hurrah by blasting two panzers off the board. On my fifth turn I took out three tank units and an Inf for the win.
Long battle with many German Panzers destroyed, with Armor Assau...
Long battle with many German Panzers destroyed, with Armor Assaults, TFHs (1 still remained in German hand; last draw), but Soviet concentrated fire won the day for the Motherland.
Ladder match, game 2.
Upon looking at my cards, I was pleased...
Ladder match, game 2.
Upon looking at my cards, I was pleased to see two Barrages, an Assault Left, Counter-Attack, and TFH. I was not delighted to see that my remaining 5 cards consisted of three Recon-1s and two additional Right cards. Against a dangerous player like Col Hogan, a lack of Center and Left mobility could be a death warrant.
Thankfully, when I played Recon-1s on the first two turns, I drew two Armor Assaults, a DHQ, and an Assault Center, along with two Attack Rights. All of these would come in handy later.
GERMAN LEFT/RUSSIAN RIGHT: On turn 3, my Barrage and Assault Left against the cluster in the corner eliminated one tank and dinged another. I followed that with an Armor Assault and the other Barrage (two more kills), and a newly-drawn Assault Left for the final kill. All the Russians could do here was recover one figure on their last tank before he died, and he killed a 2-figure Panzer.
CENTER: In the early going, the Russians put their left-center armor into cover and took some pot shots at the Panzers. I rearranged some units, but kept my distance, for safety. Then, on turn 3, seeing his Right armor dissolving, Hogan sent three Center tanks rushing toward the river. I chased them with four tanks, Direct from Headquarters, scoring one kill. The Russians played an Assault Center, scoring 1 hit and 5 flags out of 10 dice against the Panzers. I counter-attacked that in one section, and played my own Assault Center in the other section, scoring one kill and reducing two other tanks to 1 figure. After another turn of lamentable Russian dice, I followed up with my other Armor Assault. (3 more kills, and a 4-figure Russian infantry pinned against the back wall.) Though a pair of Russian Center cards eliminated two Panzers on turn 6, these losses were inconsequential.
GERMAN RIGHT/RUSSIAN LEFT: On the first three turns, I advanced some units into the woods, anticipating the possibility that I might need some well-placed units for a TFH at some point. The Russians took a few shots against protected units, instead of taking cover. On turn 4, two of my Panzers came to the gap in the woods and opened fire on a Russian armored unit, which it eliminated -- though I lost an Armor on the following turn. On an Attack Right on turn 5, I moved some Panzers into the woods. Then, on turn 6, my Assault and Probes on the Right flank reduced two Russian armors to single figures. While I lost another Panzer to the Russian response, my Probe Right on turn 7 was sufficient to destroy the two single armors and bring home the victory.
Col. Hogan had card problems throughout the game: On turn 1, his Right Move Out brought the infantries into cover. Thereafter, apart from a 2-2-2 on turn 2 and the Assault Center on turn 4, he had no cards ordering more than 3 units, and he had no cards giving extra dice. I played two Armor Assaults, a DHQ, and three Assaults, plus two very useful Counter-Attacks. And, in the end, my control of the woods against the Russian Left proved valuable, as well. So to a large extent, I can thank the cards for powering a German steamroller.
Ladder match, game 1.
The first 2 1/2 turns were uneventful -...
Ladder match, game 1.
The first 2 1/2 turns were uneventful -- mostly positioning units, with a handful of shots fired.
RUSSIAN TURN 3: Two Assaults on the Right and a Probe Center. One tank kill for each of the two FGs, and a few other, scattered hits.
GERMAN TURN 4: 2-2-2 on the right, DHQ in the middle, and Counter-Attack on the far left scored a total of 11 hits and eliminated three armors, two of which had been full-strength. In addition, an exposed SF Russian tank took three hits and was flagged back into the town.
RUSSIAN TURN 4: Probe Left, Attack Center, and Assault Right destroyed one armor each. 10 hits, in all. 5-3 Russian lead.
GERMAN TURN 5: TFH. 9 orders, most notably two tanks and an infantry on their left. No kills, but the Russians were left with five 1-figure units, including three on their right flank. 9 hits, in all.
RUSSIAN TURN 5: Russian Firefight on the left, Recon in the center, and DHQ on the right. 7 hits on the left vaporized a full-strength armor and infantry. But, fatefully, the DHQ used all 12 of its dice to score 2 hits on a tank that survived. At least three of my singletons were either in terrain or one flag away from protection. 7-3 Russian lead, though four of my seven cards were either Infantry Assaults or Move Outs.
GERMAN TURN 6: Col Hogan said, "Time to drop the hammer," as he laid down an Assault Left, Assault Center, and Probe Right. And he proceeded to destroy all five of my singletons, plus two full-strength armors and a full-strength infantry. 8 kills and 15 hits, in all. Germans now led, 11-7.
RUSSIAN TURN 6: Given my cards and position, I knew I couldn't win at this point, so I charged out and tried to improve my score as much as possible. The only German unit with fewer than 3 figures was unreachable. My Probe Center eliminated an armored unit, and my tank on the right just missed eliminating an infantry.
GERMAN TURN 7: If the Germain Right Infantry Assault hadn't eliminated my tank, their Probe Center or Attack Left probably would have done the job.
Well played, Col.
Fortunately for me, 8 hits on the last turn had brought my tiebreaker up to within 42-39, so I didn't feel too bad going into the second game of the match, but it would be tough.
Ladder Match
Round 12 Match 11
2nd half
In the early game...
Ladder Match
Round 12 Match 11
2nd half
In the early game, German was struggling with no Left cards so they're trying to switch the battle to the center and right flanks, but Russian's defense was very tight with many big cards on their hands, General Advance, Firefight, Armor Assault, and CA.
Russian launched the Armor Assault on their left flank and began to sweep across the forests, destroyed an elite while reducing another one to 1-fig. German retaliated with their own Armor Assault and got two kills on that flank, while productively killed two other units on the center flanks.
Russian played CA on the Armor Assault flank supported with a Barrage, and rolled an ARM on each center and right flank initiative, and for the whole game, Russian 1d mostly ARM, effectively gave orders to tank and killed a 1-fig enemy tanks. Russian's action was deadly enough to tied the game to 4-4.
German played TFH and gave 7 orders for all flanks, not bad compared to the prior game. Actually this turn was very good for them as they manage to destroy 4 tanks, but surprisingly, Russian was rolling hot dices after that, and swallowed 3 elite and 1 panzers in one turn, practically tied the game again to 8-8.
German's Right Flank was still very strong as another Russian tank was destroyed, but their key winning is the lone tank survivor in the forest which failed to be destroyed by them and in the next turn, a TFH order on that tank succesfully wiped two units to give the Russian the medals they need to win the match.
Everything was too late for the German, even though the CA on TFH successfully ended the game to their winning after eliminating three units. After reviewing both games, it's safe to say that the up and down of TFH rolls on both sides played a major factor of deciding who's winning the game.
Kills Ratio
German 40 : Russian 37
***
Jeff won the close match by 22 - 21 (81 - 78 kills)
Ladder Match
Round 12 Match 11
1st half
Russian was dealt w...
Ladder Match
Round 12 Match 11
1st half
Russian was dealt with 6 flank cards, TFH, Firefight, Medic, and Dig-In, looks like the strongest section was the center flank. German played Barrage and took out an artillery in one turn, but after several turns of aggressive play of panzer, Russian was able to soften up the attack and gained 3 kills by with the BEL and Firefight cards.
Russian made a mistake after putting two units on the right flank in the open field and smashed by the mighty German Armor Assault and they quickly eliminated three units there, practically crippling the half section of Russian right flank.
Another mistake by the Russian was not realizing the river was fordable as they thought there's no retreat path for the German panzer and it did safely retreated to the back with no kill to the Russian side. For the right flank, things not very good as they expect two kills from the panzer, but only 1 was successful.
German's BEL and Close Assault proved deadly as they managed to reduce a lot of Russian tanks to 1-fig and eliminated a unit. Russian fought hard and able to knocked down three units, but the German easily picked three weakened units and was leading by 9-8.
Russian was struggling with cards so they decided to go with the TFH, but rolling on each flank were awfully bad that not enough order for the tanks to roam around and eventually they only got a kill while the German comfortably enough to play the necessary card to kill three units for the victory.
This was Rd 12 - MATCH 8 - Game 2 of the Mem 44 ladder.
I los...
This was Rd 12 - MATCH 8 - Game 2 of the Mem 44 ladder.
I lost game 1 10 to 12 as the Russians. So, a win is needed in this game. I push two panzers into Bogoroditskoye in the center and two panzers into woods on my left along with an elite panzer into woods on my right. I get two hits on the Russian tank on my right w/ no retreat path. John B, orders 4 units on both his right and center but does little damage.
I then CA his center 2 + 2 and launch my an ARMOR ASSAULT on my Left. I send one of these ordered tanks to aid my center attack. I also use my BARRAGE in the center to soften up the Russian armor and this attack gets 2 hits. Seven panzers attack and kill two tanks in the center and reduce two more to 1 fig. I get two tank kills on my left too (one was the 1 fig tank that I hit on my first turn). I take a 4 to 0 lead and 4 Russian tanks are history.
Then back to back to back TFH turns follow.
John orders nine units on his next turn - 4 right - 3 center and 2 left. He kills 2 panzers on my left and 1 in the center. He now has the upper hand on my left.
My TFH orders but 5 units and only 1 panzer in the center and my left. I throw both into attacks in the center and only kill off one of the 1 fig tanks there - missing the other w/ 3 dice. Although I do reduce two more tanks to 1 fig each.
Then the next Russ TFH gets 8 orders but only inf in the center. I only lose 1 center panzer and I still lead the game 5 to 4.
My next turn I am able to hit hard in the center again (C ALL) and kill off a 2 fig Inf and a 1 fig tank (after throwing 7 shots at it). I also kill off a 1 fig tank on my left along w/ another tank. I then eliminate a 1 fig tank my left w/ 6 shots. I pick up 5 kills and take a 10 to 4 lead.
John B can only get one more medal on his next turn -- missing a fig panzer on my right w/ 6 shots, before I end the game with two more kills by cutting off an elite tank in the center and then eliminating and Inf there too.
This was game one of Match 8 - Rd 12 of the Mem 44 ladder.
An...
This was game one of Match 8 - Rd 12 of the Mem 44 ladder.
An interesting battle where the score went 2-0 Ger,4-2 Russ, 4-4 tie, 6-4 Russ, 7-6 Ger, 9-7 Russ, 9-9 tie, 10-9 Russ and finally 12 to 9 Ger.
Most of the action occurred in the center and Russ left.
The Germans got into good positions on both flanks early. They also destroyed both Russ arty and got 2 hits on one of the Elite Russ tanks w/ T 1 and T 2 Air Powers (the T 2 one was a CA on a Russ AP that only got 2 hits). These two kills took away the arty support in the middle. Losing both of them before they ever fired a shot was key in the battle.
I launched an early 4 tank attack in the center and picked up 3 medals there along w/ another on my right. But after funneling in panzers from both flanks, JohnnyB killed off all my center tanks after two turns.
Another key was a 1 fig panzer that lurked near my left/ center baseline that I could not kill w/ 8 shots over 2 turns. This unit then recovered 2 figs and killed off one of my Inf and remained a threat till the end of the game. Had I eliminated it, it would have seen me to a 10 to 8 lead before I played my TFH.
But staring at a 9 to 9 game, in a bad position in both flanks and the center and too many weak units near the front, I played TFH. Unfortunately, I only got 2 orders on my right (as opposed to 3 on my left and 4 in the center) where I really needed an extra order or two. I could only use 2 orders in my center and i could only concentrate 2 units in any one are on my left.
Looking back at it I could have conducted my attacks better on my right w/ the support of my center tank. But as it was, after wiping out a 3 fig Inf on my left, I went 1 for 11 w/ my shots vs the panzers including an 0 for 4 whiff vs a 1 fig panzer. The endgame saw me get but 1 hit in my last 22 shots vs the armor. I only picked up one medals. My opponent then killed off a 3 fig Inf on my right, a 1 fig Inf and a 2 fig tank in the center for the 12 to 10 win.
The overall luck factor (other than the cards) was not that great a difference in the game, it was just that when I really needed a critical roll, I could not get it.
* PBEM *
In the early turn, both sides reposition their units...
* PBEM *
In the early turn, both sides reposition their units with the German launched an early air strike and scored 2 hits on 2 Russian tanks. After German began to roll his panzers to the front, Russian played DHQ in the center flank and occupied Bogoroditskaye with 2 tanks.
German saw this as an opportunity and quickly launched an Armor Assault toward the city, but couple of attacks were flags which managed to push two tanks to the back but failed to kill any units. Russian answered this with couple of center cards and BEL and a good rolls scored them two medals, including one elite panzer.
German healed a weakened infantry with a Medic card and did nothing in the center flanks. This gave the Russian an opportunity to score another kills and so the Firefight card goes, but the dice were awfully bad that they only scored 1/10 hit against a panzer. German fought back and reduced a tank to 1-fig while eliminating the other one in a single attack. Russian widened the medal gap after Move Out and Probe-Center knocked out two units.
German then played TFH but with only one kill and lots of FLG rolled against the Russian tank, they're in the big trouble after Russian attack again resulting in two kills and reduced two German units to 1-fig. After a German attack succesfully destroyed two Russian tanks, Russian kept playing aggressive and killed three infantries in a single turn to lead 9-5.
In the late game, Russian played their second Firefight and grabbed a kill on their right flank and reduced two panzers to 1-fig. On the verge of winning, Russian played a high-winning probability move but failed on their dices. Luckily for them, German still unable to came out from their string of bad-dices as an Ambush and big close combat attack still left the Russian units intact. Finally, Russian managed to kill an infantry to win the game by 12-7.
RUSSIANS
CinC: sam1812
Left: Nemeszili, replaced by Boddekker...
RUSSIANS
CinC: sam1812
Left: Nemeszili, replaced by Boddekker. Center: Bayernkini. Right: Boddekker. After Bayernkini and Boddekker left late in the game, Sam finished up.
GERMANS
CinC: longbearder, replaced by JJAZ when Allies were leading 2-1.
Right: Gene. Center: JJAZ. Left: Vspurg.
TURNS 1-3 - The Germans mostly took cover the first two turns, shifted four Center tanks toward their right, and rolled only 3 dice. Russians took cover on turn 1, but then rolled 6 hits (in 8 dice) in the center and right against Panzers, and followed that with 7 more hits against Panzers the next turn, including two kills. 2-1, Russians.
JJAZ took over for longbearder as German CinC.
TURN 4 - Germans fried an armor in each section. Russians scored only one kill in response, but Germans were left with three 1-figure Panzers. 4-3, Germans.
TURN 5 - German Right Armor Assault brought 3 units between the forests on their right/center seam, but it was one tank in the open that scored three fatal hits on a Russian armor. Each Russian Field General scored a kill on Their Finest Hour that ordered a total of 4 tanks and 4 infantries. 6-5, Russians.
TURN 6 - On a Probe Right, one Panzer killed a 2-figure Russian tank on the baseline, and scored two hits on another tank next to it. A Center Panzer whiffed against a 1-figure Russian tank on the baseline next to the river. The Russian response destroyed both of the aforementioned Panzers, plus a 1-figure Panzer on the Right, for good measure. 9-6, Russians.
TURN 7 - A German Attack Right brought another Panzer, which had overrun into the woods, down to the baseline, where it killed a 1-figure Russian armor and then scored 3 hits on an adjacent infantry in the overrun. German Right infantry scored 2 hits on a Russian tank in the open, but a German infantry on the left rolled 3 dice against a 1-figure Russian tank, and merely retreated it into the woods.
In response, Russian Probes in the left and center ganged up on the invading 3-figure Panzer on their baseline, and eliminated it. Meanwhile, in an Armor Assault on the right, two tanks combined to eliminate a 3-figure Panzer, and then rolled 3 hits against the infantry that had flagged the 1-figure tank into the woods. The tank in the woods (which had intended to target an adjacent 1-figure Panzer) then close-assaulted the infantry for the final kill (rolling 2 INFs and 2 stars). This was the first kill of an infantry in the game. Final score, 12-7, Russians.
Russians eliminated more figures, 43-38.
Keys to the game:
* Russians rolled 13 hits against German tanks in the first 3 turns (including an ambush).
* Germans got down as low as 4 cards by the end, and apparently ran short on good cards. While the Russian cards weren't ideal, they were always good enough.
* And when the three Panzers Armor Assaulted down their right/center seam on turn 5, we had more firepower in the area than they did.
Excellent slugfest. The German left pressed hard on the Russians...
Excellent slugfest. The German left pressed hard on the Russians early dishing out heavy casualties. However, the Russians made the game interesting by pressing the center. In the end a last minute armor assault by the Germans was enough to pull out a great victory.
I played this scenario with three of my friends, using our own h...
I played this scenario with three of my friends, using our own house rules. My friend Pat and I were the Russians, against our friends Jonny and Lance, who were the Germans.
This was the first Overlord Scenario any of us have ever played. I own the game and most of the expansions, and my friends and I play using my stuff. We figured that with only four of us (and no chance of ever finding more than four of us to play at once) we should alter the Overlord rules. We played it as two regular sized games happening side by side, with each team having access to and sharing the command cards for their side.
The battle fought between my friends Pat and Jonny happened in the heavily forested area, which would be the Left Flank if one were looking at things from the Russian perspective. Theirs was a slower, more strategic game. The first few turns consisted of them positioning. Once the action began, it was mostly a battle of units firing from cover to cover, rolling only one die on most occasions.
Pat and I were blessed with great cards for the duration of the game, but Jonny and Lance's cards were hit and miss. Jonny also has a nasty habit of rolling terribly whenever he plays the game. This impeded his one major attack on the Left Flank. He sent his German armor against Pat's Russian units near Prokhorovka, including a strafing attack (we gave an Air Sortie card to each side at game start). Jonny did some damage, but Pat held and the German attack ran out of steam.
On the Right Flank, with the river and smaller towns, my friend Lance and I fought a much different kind of battle ... a brutal slugging match with heavy losses for both sides. Lance started by sending his German Heavy Armor charging in to my lines. I engaged him head on with my T-34's.
Later, Lance sent the rest of his armor forward, and I engaged him with whatever armor and infantry I had left. Eventually, Lance's attack ran out of steam just like Jonny's, due to unfortunate card draws. I seized this advantage and played an Armor Assault card, and then a Direct from HQ on my next turn. These turns crushed the remnants of Lance's armor, and I proceeded to advance deep in to his lines, and slaughtered two infantry units with my T-34's.
During this swirling melee of tanks on the Right Flank, Jonny had managed to shoot down a Fighter Plane that Pat was using to strafe German infantry. Pat was trying to mount his own offensive through the forest, but the loss of the plane, and the resulting medal it gave Jonny and Lance, convinced Pat to postpone rushing in for an armored attack.
At this point in the battle, the Germans had 9 medals, and the Russians had 10. It was then that Jonny drew a General Advance card. He concocted a bold gamble to nab three medals on his next turn, winning the game. For this to happen, he would need to score at least one hit with all six of his rolls. He would also have to expose his weakened armor units in order to have clear shots at all his targets. It was a game deciding play.
He biffed it, getting only one hit, and no further medals. His Memoir '44 rolls are notoriously bad, and this moment was no exception. Lance couldn't do anything to help, as his Flank was in utter ruin. My turn came around and I destroyed another of Lance's infantry units, and then Pat destroyed one of Jonny's armored units to claim the final medal. Victory for the Soviet Union, 12 medals to 9.
The final kill tally reflected the differences in the battles on the two Flanks. Pat and Jonny each destroyed 3 of each other's units on the Left, while on the Right, Lance destroyed 6 of my units, while I destroyed 9 of his. One of Lance's Armored units was reduced to one figure, then sent to Jonny's Flank and placed under his control. This left only 2 units at game's end on Lance's Flank, both of them Infantry, out of an original 12.
Who knows when the next Overlord game will happen? I first bought the base game in 2008, and as of June 2009, I've only played one Overlord scenario. Perhaps in another year everyone's work schedules will correlate enough so that the Peleliu Landings may be attempted.
This was game # 2 of a PBEM Vassal match which I win 24 to 17.
...
This was game # 2 of a PBEM Vassal match which I win 24 to 17.
I start the game w/ two 1-1-1s, LEFT 1, RIGHT 3, MOVE OUT, BEL, CLOSE ASSAULT, AMBUSH, MED & MECH and COUNTERATTACK. Not a bad starting hand although in OL games the BEL and MED & MECH cards are weak as they can only order 1 unit in any given 1/3 of the board. I play MOVE OUT (Left), 1-1-1 (Center) and RIGHT 1 to start things off. With the play of the RECON 1 card I can get my hand back up to 10 cards after playing these three. I only get off two shots and one hit on a Russian tank on my left. My right Inf advance into the middle row of woods and two of my center panzers also seek the shelter of the trees. I draw the other BEL, INF ASSAULT and RIGHT RECON 1. Sam plays AIR POWER, CENTER 3 and RIGHT 2. Sam gets one hit on two Inf and a panzer and two hits on another panzer (Ger left – right sector) with the AIR POWER. Six Russian tanks then roll forward. Two move into Bogoroditskoye and another moves onto the hills by the town. On the Russian right, one tank moves into the woods. Two hits are scored on one of my left elite panzers. Several turns go by with little shooting. We both try to take cover where we can and shoot when possible. A few hits are scored here and there. The Russian armor is pushed out of Bogoroditskoye. I revive a 2 fig elite panzer w/ my MED & Mech card. I also use AMBUSH which prevents this same panzer from being destroyed in the next Russian turn and scoring the first medal of the game for me by wiping out a 2 fig Inf. In my next turn I wipe out a tank unit to take a 2 to 0 lead. Sam then bounces back and kills off two of my weakened panzers (my left) to tie the game at 2. But I strike back hard and kill off three tanks to take a 5 to 2 lead. Sam brings the score to 5 to 4 after eliminating two of my panzers (one on my left – the other on my right). This is where the battle has really raged for the past several turns. I kill off two more tanks and an Inf for a 8 to 4 score. The Russian left is looking mighty thin. Sam, aided by a FIREFIGHT, then turns things a bit. He goes 5 for 6 on two of my panzers and kills off both along w/ an Inf to make the score 8 to 7. I fail to kill off a 1 fig tank on my left w/ 3 shots but do finish off an Inf there to move the score to 9 to 7. I also push the tank out of Bogoroditskoye that had moved into the town last turn w/ an Inf attack. Sam keeps the pressure on my left and kills off an Inf. There are four Russian tanks to my one in that sector – not good. With the score 9 to 8 in my favor, I launch an all out attack hoping I can end this. I play my ARMOR ASSAULT in the center. I also COUNTERATTACK the right Russian 2-2-2 card and play a RIGHT 2 to order one Inf to try and kill off a 2 fig Inf there. I easily kill off the 2 fig Inf (INF,INF,INF) and finally eliminate the 1 fig Russian tank (3 shots). I now have 11 medals – one more to go. My next attack gets 1 hit (2 shots) on a tank. I do not expect my next attack to end the game (I pin that hope on my center attack w/ 4 panzers using the ARMOR ASSAULT card) but get the two hits I need for the win.
This was my 350th Mem 44 game!!
Game # 1 of a PBEM Vassal mat...
This was my 350th Mem 44 game!!
Game # 1 of a PBEM Vassal match.
Sam puts me in a hole early by reducing two of my center tanks down to 1 fig each. I score a kill in my next turn by eliminating a panzer but Sam then wipes out three of my tanks in return. I am in deep trouble already in the center as several panzer units converge in this area. The tank battle that rages on in the center and Russian right sees my lead at 5 to 4 in medals at the end of the third turn. But the panzers outnumber my armor by a 2:1 margin in the center. Sure enough, Sam wipes out two more of my tanks and a boardedge 2 fig inf for a 7 to 5 lead. I tie up the game by killing off a 1 fig panzer on my right and a 2 fig Inf in the center. But my attacks did not go as well as expected. Sam now advances on his right and left. He rolls for Int in the center and gets a STR. But Sams luck goes into the tank (pun intended?) on his next turn as he fails to kill off two 1 fig tanks (3 shots each). In my turn I get four tanks moving on my left. I also kill off three panzers (1 fig on my right - 1 fig in the center and a 3 fig in the center). This breaks the 7 - 7 and gives me a 10 to 7 lead. My center looks a lot better now. We both have tow tank units w/ a total of 4 figs each. I have two tank units on my right to none for the Germans. Then I draw ARMOR ASSAULT and FIREFIGHT. I also have AIR POWER (I have had this in my hand for several turns). Sam picks up there medals (two are 1 fig units – one tank & one Inf) to tie the score at 10. But I lay down COUNTERATTACK (BARRAGE), FIREFIGHT and ARMOR ASSAULT. The BARRAGE wipes out a 1 fig panzer in the center. My FIREFIGHT only gets one hit on 5 shots. But my main attack is four tank units that have cut off an 3 fig Inf unit in the woods. With ARMOR ASSAULT each tank will roll 2 dice. Only my first two attacks are needed to win the game. At the end of my turn only a Ger Inf remained in the center. Ten of my 12 kills were panzers. I also lost eight tank units to enemy action.
7-player Vassal game.
German CinC: sam1812 (Sam E.)
Right, ...
7-player Vassal game.
German CinC: sam1812 (Sam E.)
Right, AP514. Center, TommieSL (Barry). Left, Col. Hogan.
Russian CinC: Tank Commander (John S.)
Left, Liverbirds. Center, Tank Commander. Right, Yangtze.
This was my first time as CinC in a multi-player game.
I knew that the entire Russian side consisted of heavyweights. There was a decent chance that we were overmatched in the flanks. Looking at all those enemy tanks, I told my flank FGs to take advantage of the cover of the woods (and town) as much as possible.
On turn 1, I gave my two flank FGs cards that could help them take cover -- Right-All and Left DHQ. The Russians highlight of the Russian first turn was an Air Power that scored 6 hits in the Center -- including 5 against our tanks. No card was given to the Russian Center, so he rolled for Initiative and got a flag, and the only unit he could retreat was his second-row tank. A couple of tanks on both Russian flanks took cover in the trees.
Turn 2: I Counter-Attacked the Air Power in the Center, and scored four hits, including a flag against the tank that had just retreated to the back row. And a few more units on both sides repositioned themselves. Through 2 rounds, no ground unit fired a shot.
Turn 3, Germany. TFH. We scored a few hits, but no kills. In the Center, Tank Commander ambushed a tank that was attacking his armored unit in the forward town, which meant that his ambush consisted of just 1d -- a tactical error, as he said later.
Turn 3, Russia. Counter-Attack. On the left, Liverbirds struck out with 4 flags. In the middle, Tank Commander eliminated 2 of the units that had been weakened by the air strike. On the right, Yangtze was able to advance 4 tanks. He eliminated one armored unit and trimmed a Panzer down to 1 fig. In addition, he was setting up for an Armor Assault that would be coming his way on the next turn. Score: 0-3.
In retrospect, we had no reason to suspect it at the time, but Yangtze being able to advance four tanks into the open set up the turning point of the battle, which was about to happen....
Turn 4, Germany. I was holding a Counter-Attack, but chose not to use it. I preferred to be guaranteed some strong attacks. Also, if we didn't cut back those tanks on the Russian Right, Col. Hogan would be routed. I gave him an Armor Assault for his 3 tanks, and he proceeded to rack up 12 hits on 22 rolls, *totally* wiping out 4 full-strength armored units.
Interestingly, the first of our FGs to battle this turn was Barry, to whom I had given a Center-3. He killed one Russian tank, and then rolled 8 misses against another 2-fig tank that was hanging in the middle of the field. I commented, "I won't curse the dice, because I want their help later" -- and immediately after that comment, fortuitously enough, is when Col. Hogan went on his remarkable tear. (It would be fun to claim responsibility, but I can't.)
On the German Right, AP514 got a Right-3, and his infantries scored one hit against a tank in the woods.
Turn 4, Russia: Armor Assaults in the Left (killind 2 infantries) and Center (killing a tank, but missing with a bunch of other shots). A Right-All allowed Yangtze's infantries to run for some cover. Score: 5-6.
Turn 5, Germany: On the Left, Col. Hogan killed Yangtze's last remaining tank, which had advanced to the bridge. AP used a Close Assault to kill one tank and weaken another down to 1 figure. And in the Center, Barry got to Counter Attack against the previous turn's Armor Assault, and proceeded to kill 3 Russian tanks. Going back to turn 4, we had amazingly rolled something like 30/50 against the Russian tanks.
Turn 5, Russia: Another TFH. Several hits, but no kills. Score: 10-6.
Germany had scored 5 medals on turn 4, and 5 more on turn 5.
Turn 6, Russia: I Barraged a 1-fig tank on my right, and destroyed it. Infantry Assault on the Left rolled 2 hits against a Russian infantry in the woods -- our first hit of the day against infantry. (I had more cards, to finish it off, if necessary.) Finally, on a Right-3, AP514 scored 2 hits to destroy a Russian tank and win the game.
Special congratulations are in order to the German Field Generals, who scored a resounding win against three strong Russian players.
Special thanks go to the dice, because if our luck on turns 4-5 had only been average, we might have lost the game.
And a special handshake of respect and camaraderie to our extremely worthy opponents. It was a well-fought battle, and despite the lopsided final score, it easily could have gone the other way.
Final tallies:
Col. Hogan - 5 kills
Barry - 4 (Amazing, since I wasn't even able to give him cards on three of the six turns!)
AP514 - 2
Myself - 1
Tank Commander - 3 kills
Liverbirds - 2
Yangtze - 1 (though we hear that Stalin got pretty mad when he heard about those tanks)
Uncountably many dice rolls -- though interestingly, the Russian artillery didn't fire a single shot the whole game.
I had a killer hand to start things off with. Two ARMOR ASSAULTS...
I had a killer hand to start things off with. Two ARMOR ASSAULTS, INF ASSAULT, FIREFIGHT and CLOSE ASSAULT.
I think the best sector to attack for the Germans is their right (Russ left). The center is too strong and has the Russ arty. The Russ right has both strong forces of Inf and armor.
I used Inf Assault to rush my Inf from their starting woods hex row into the next woods row. I also made minor adjustments to my Left. In both my center and left, I wished to just move my units into the available cover and reply on my push on my right to get me in a position to win.
I soon moved my advancing inf into the next row of woods hexes in order to be able to use FIREFIGHT against the Russian board edge units. I also move my armor into positions from where they could use ARMOR ASSAULT if the opportunity arose. I wanted to cripple the Russian armor and would target those units every time I was given the chance.
I used AMBUSH to get two hits one one tank. Then my CLOSE ASSAULT killed off one Russ tank and badly hurt another. Soon FIREFIGHT depleted the Russian armor even more. Then I played back to back ARMOR ASSAULTS and had the Russians on the run. My first 6 medals were from eliminating the Russ tanks.
I now switched to my center and left. This was due in part to running out of cards for my right. I rushed the hills near Prokhorvka and did some damage. But Dave countered w/ CLOSE ASSAULT and killed off two of my tanks. This was not good enough as a final charge finished off the game when I killed off two Russ Inf on my Left.
The Russian center defenses were pressed hard (along w/ the Russ...
The Russian center defenses were pressed hard (along w/ the Russ left. Most of the action took place in both these areas.
The Germnas took a 3 - 0 lead. I tied it the next turn but then fell behind 7 to 3 the very next turn. Although I was able to close again to a 7 to 6 deficit the next turn after I was looking at a 9 to 7 score. The German turn after was a TFH w/ 8 out of 10 rolls ordering units (5 of them armor).
Two German Right Alls, two Center Alls, two Armor Assaults and a TFH proved too much for the Russians to overcome.
Une partie équilibrée, jouée principalement au centre et à gauch...
Une partie équilibrée, jouée principalement au centre et à gauche dans les trouées. Pas de réel phases décisives mais des dés changeant au moment où ils ne le devraient pas. Belle partie.
VGassal 2-player PBEM
A very quick game, I think we only had ...
VGassal 2-player PBEM
A very quick game, I think we only had 5 rounds before this things was over. A great clash of tanks with all but 3 of the victory medals being armor units.
Not a high quality match, with some newbie players but very fun....
Not a high quality match, with some newbie players but very fun.
Left flank ended in tanks wiping out each other until only 1 allied remained.
Right flank scored a slight advantage for axis due to allied troops giving scarce support each other.
Center was won by Axis after a heavy bombardment on artillery (2 barrage and 1 air power) reduced it to 1 figure and tanks charge on the hills
Pour les Allemands, les deux flancs (gauche et droite) ont étés ...
Pour les Allemands, les deux flancs (gauche et droite) ont étés la clé, puisque les Alliés n'ont aucunes artilleries sur les côtés. Le centre des alliés est bien nanti avec des artilleries dans des villes, des chars d'élite etc. Nous avons donc cru bon de s'attaquer aux flancs et ce fut la bonne stratégie et nous avons eu les cartes pour... bien entendu!!
la bataille fut sanglante surtout sur le flanc droit alors qu'a ...
la bataille fut sanglante surtout sur le flanc droit alors qu'a gauche les deux rangee de forets neutraliserent les differentes attaques causant peu de perte d'un coté comme de l'autre. au centre la position russe fut maintenu gace au positionnement des troupes et surtout grace a l'artillerie qui fut devastatrice; les allemands ayant peu d'androit pour se mettre a l'abri
A combination of rookie Field Generals and bad luck led to a tot...
A combination of rookie Field Generals and bad luck led to a total slaughter at Kursk. I've never seen such a one-sided game, resolved 12 to 2! We tried to stress the importance of terrain here, but generals left tanks and infantry in the open, and it all came crashing down.
Axis hit fast and quick on the right taking the forest positions...
Axis hit fast and quick on the right taking the forest positions right in front of the Soviet Armor. Germans held and left as the right tore up the Soviets.
The action was nearly all on the flanks. We had only three peopl...
The action was nearly all on the flanks. We had only three people per side and the CIC's tended to play the tactics cards, limiting action in the center. The Allies definitely had the advantage in cards. Quickly using air power and barrage to decimate a couple of Axis elite tank units. This made quite a difference on the Allied left flank. Though the Axis still used everything they had to try and hammer through on that side, there was little they could do but slowly fall back. On the right of the Allies it was the Axis that pushed. But they could never get beyond halfway across the board before an Allied counterattack would force them back. This is a slug match right from the start. What little action there was in the center mainly consisted of the Axis pushing into the town and then getting blown out again by the Allied artillery. It was a fight with the Axis never losing hope. But in the end, two airpower, a barrage, and a couple of artillery bombards made the difference.
Partie diablement longue (3 heures !) au cours de laquelle les d...
Partie diablement longue (3 heures !) au cours de laquelle les déplacements ont surtout été faits au centre. A la faveur d'une attaque ratée de mon adversaire, j'ai pu couper ses forces en deux en réduisant considérablement ses unités vers Prokhorovka.
La victoire s'est jouée à peu de choses et personne n'a vraiment clairement dominé le jeu. Ce fut une bataille très âpre, très longue à démarrer, avant de se terminer de façon redoutable, chacun jetant l'ensemble de ses forces dans la bataille.
Après un bon début de partie. Les bonnes cartes nous ont fait dé...
Après un bon début de partie. Les bonnes cartes nous ont fait défaut et les dés ne nous ont guère favorisé juste surtout avant une certaine carte (combat rapproché). Mais ce n'est que partie remise...
Ray and I played against Chris and Eric.
On the Axis right fl...
Ray and I played against Chris and Eric.
On the Axis right flank, they quickly advanced up one treeline. The allies placed a couple tanks in the trees to counter, and the positional stalemate remained for the rest of the game on this flank.
The battle started on the axis left flank with a quick armor push. The allies had no right flank cards, but a good selection of general cards that were used to good effect on the right flank. Quickly all the Axis tanks on the axis left (allies right flank were destroyed with a pair of single strength allied tanks surviving. the center section adjacent to this flank also engageds around Bogoroditskoye as both sides played armor assaults. The allies destroyed two tanks and killed the infantry but lost all four tanks. on the other side of the center, both sides lost an armor unit.
The game ended with a score of 11 to 7 as the axis commanders were demoralized and both sides were getting bored.
We had 4 players and experienced much trouble converting the 6-8...
We had 4 players and experienced much trouble converting the 6-8 player overlord rules to 2 teams of two. We ended up "splitting" the center flank so each person controlled an entire board. I played the Russian right flank and right center. We found it very difficult to adjust the chain of command rules to what amounted to co-generalship. Also found the varied re-tooling of cards to correspond properly a little cumbersome.
Will most likely not play standard "Overlord" rules again as we found them lacking.
As for the game, Axis played two assualt cards on the flanks early, moving many forces to mid-range, but poor rolling caused few casualties. Allies followed up with two "counter-Attack" cards on the flanks, moving their units into close assualt/overrun, wiping out one unit on each flank and reducing one unit on each flank to one figure.
Axis left flank (by the river and towns) never recovered. Allies played 3 cards per turn (with two cards or a choice special card going to the Allied right flank every turn) thanks to four "Recons" that kept their hand-size from shrinking too much. The focus on that flank crushed the German forces there, earning the Allies 8 of their 12 victory medals.
When things started to look desperate, the Axis also began playing 3 cards per turn, but too late to save their position. Axis left flank managed 2 medals before being swept from the board.
The allied left flank (with all the woods) became a slow war of atrittion, with both sides taking up defensive positions in the trees. Tanks could only attack into the woods at 1 die (-2 for woods), while the infantry likewise could only attack into the woods at 1 die (-1 for range -1 woods). Any unit foolish enough to step into the open was blasted to bits. Axis did well enough to tie 3 medals to 3 on that flank, but couldn't cause damage fast enough to compensate for their routed left flank.
The center was barely contested. The Germans were very hesitant to assualt the hills, towns, and well entrenched Russian artillery. The Allies were content to leave the Axis positions alone and focus elsewhere, leading both sides to bleed armor to the flanks to help their efforts there. A late German probe yielded one medal, but the Russian response netted one as well, leaving the center tied 1-1.
Total: Russians 12/Axis 6
Thoughts:
Germans suffered from some bad luck and average card draws. The Allies always seemed to have the right card and a hot hand on the dice (except for one Axis tank unit that survived multiple volleys at only 1 strength.) Additionally, if the Axis had played 3 cards more often, they might have fared better. You can't take them with you, so why leave them unspent on the table? Although the multiple "Recon" cards for the Allies did allow them more draws to work with. Overall found "Overlord" rules too fidely, will re-work something for next game.
A story of two battles really -- on my right flank I had the wor...
A story of two battles really -- on my right flank I had the worst luck. My armor performed very poorly and only produced 1 hit from over 30 rolls!!! Needless to say, I was losing badly on that flank. I sent what I could over to bolster the situation -- one of my tank units from the center. At the end I had only one 3 fig Inf unit cowering in the woods facing 4 Ger Inf units (two w/ 3 fig).
In the center it was the opposite. I moved forward and quickly had the Germans on the ropes. Unfortunately, my luck in the center left me in the end game and the Germans ended up winning the game in this sector.
On the next to last turn, I had advanced two armor units behind a Ger armor unit hoping to wipe it out. I fired both tank units and two long range arty at it (8 shots and only got 2 hits). This same unit then advanced, targeted a one fig tank unit and killed it giving the Ger their 11 medal.
I could not respond effectively in my turn (bad cards) and then in the following turn a Ger Inf unit used a behind enemy lines to fire at a 2 fig Russ Inf unit on the board edge and wiped it out -- game over.
The German forces started out with caution in the center, but I ...
The German forces started out with caution in the center, but I set up for a push in the center and my right as I had the ARMOR ASSAULT and INFANTRY ASSAULT cards at hand.
I moved forward and soon destroyed the German forces in the center and put a hurt on soon German units on the German left.
We played this Eastern front scenario with original pieces since...
We played this Eastern front scenario with original pieces since no special terrain nor features are required.
Axis put emphasis on flanks since they feared Soviet anti-tank gun emplacement at Prokhorovka. They were proved right when one of their tanks was completely destroyed when Soviets played the Artillery card while it wondered too close (four hexes apart).
On German right flank, they seized the central row of woods and with tank reinforcements from the centre kept the initiative but failed to make any progress and had to deal with Soviet Guards tanks that arrived to help.
Where Soviets made the lead they kept until the end was on German left flank. Germans les their attack with tanks who were quickly separated from infantry. Soviets responded with Infantry and Armoured Assault cards in two consecutive turns, crippling German attack and establishing a dominant position that even German tanks from the centre failed to revert.
In the end, German armor was all but destroyed making the first seven of Soviet medals and Soviet team was proudly expecting the presentation of Hero of the Soviet Union medals in Kremlin.
Nearly all players except the generals of both armies where quit...
Nearly all players except the generals of both armies where quite noobs.
Despite all previsions the germans succesfuly drive a deep central assault, destroying nearly all russian forces and one artillery unit (thanks to the aid of a air power card).
On the left flank forces quickly acieved a stale situation with all forces of both parties hidden in woods and only small casualties from personal actions of field officiers.
On the right flank a furious fight for the control of cities and central woods ended in a bloodbath until german reinforcements arrived from the central section and halted russian advance.
