Note: The following is available as a YouTube video here.
Situation at the end of German Turn 1
He advances his American 119th Infantry, carefully maintaining concealment, to challenge my attack.
Situation at the start of German Turn 2.
In this scenario the very important 3 American bazookas are
hidden until used by SSR, and for the German player this creates uncertainty
and a dilemma. The first Critical Moment is not on the board, or in the dice,
but in my imagination - “At least one of these counterattacking units must have
one of those killer bazookas!” This leads to a series of moves aimed at saving
my now ‘endangered’ SPW 250/9 – a unit I wanted to preserve.
So, the plan hinges on firstly ‘freezing’ the unit in 06K2
using Vehicle Bypass – risky with an Open Topped AFV. And then, moving into the
06L1 hex to strip Concealment and maybe even draw fire, but mostly then to
allow Bounding First Fire from the threatened halftrack into that then
unconcealed unit – a pretty good chance to effect and Break or Pin it, before
it gets a shot off with that ‘invisible’ bazooka.
Moving a halftrack (SPW 251/1) in bypass into 06K2, the next
Critical Moment came when the American Squad passed a Pre-AFV Attack Task Check
(the PAATC - or ‘Patsy’) to enable it to use reaction fire and attack the
halftrack in close combat. This is gutsy with a 6 Morale unit, the failure to
pass meaning a Pin and an effective ‘freeze’. Jason rolled low again on the Close
Combat attack and the halftrack was Eliminated.
Situation during German Turn 2 – the American Squad
eliminates the halftrack with CC Reaction Fire.
The Ami Squad was now free to fire outside its hex, meaning
that follow up manoeuvres were pinned by its fire, leading to a further
overcommitment of forces to strip Concealment and enable that all important Bounding
First Fire.
I then attempted to rescue the situation by trying to eliminate
these units, but nothing came off. I just threw ‘good money after bad’. It’s
fair to say that the dice were not favouring me with this series of connected
events, and this just amplified the effect of the two Critical Moments. As
losses mounted, initiative swung to the Defender and opportunities to progress
the attack were missed.
The irony in all this is that there were no bazookas with
these units at all! The worst possible outcome for the halftrack had I known
(or assumed) this was a Stun result.
I never really recovered from these losses and time spent
avoiding a bazooka shot that was never possible. Was there luck involved, of
course, but the impact of that good or bad luck could have been avoided had I
made a different decision about the probability or risk of the presence of a
bazooka in one or both of those two units.
For the record, I did capture the victory Hex in 03Q8, but I
was outnumbered in the end and did not have the resources to hang on against
most of the intact America order of battle.
So well done to Jason, and good luck in round 2 of the
tournament.
I’ll be back soon with another Critical Moment. Until then,
roll low ... when it counts!
Credits:
ASL User Interface – VASL Templates, VASL and VASSAL, Jason, MMP, ASL Scenario Archive.