3rd ID vs German Horde

   
Today, Steve and I got together for a Late War 1750 point game.  I brought my US infantry representing the 3rd Infantry Division.  Steve had a unique way of choosing his forces.  Steve has a list of 20 various forces for the German army, his pick of the list is based on a roll of a D20 dice roll.  His roll produced a list of ... Tigers and Panzer IV's !  **Glup**

We rolled for the mission and produced ... Domination.  Domination has vital points of the battlefield represented in poker chips.  Various chips equal certain points.  Seeing the battle at hand I figured it would go more towards who remained ON the field of battle before victory would be shown by points.

Steve's photos and AAR are excellent.  To see his side of the battle check out the link: WWPD

 

1st Platoon (Rifles) deployed in the woods moving towards an objective.  They were attempting to get to a hill and be able to dig in.  But German Panzer IVs had another idea.

 

 Sherman Platoon's deployment area with 81mm Mortars getting ready to dig in.

 

2nd Platoon (Assault) looking towards their objective point.  This vital point (the hill) overlooked the village.

 

 81mm Mortars dug in while the Shermans move towards the roadway.

 

2nd Platoon moving with no obstacles to contend with. 

 

  1st Platoon getting to the base of Hill 1A.  Unfortunately German tanks occupy it.

 

 The lead M-10 pops a Tiger with a side shot. Then all heck breaks loose !

 

 Two M-10s go up in flames as combined fire of Panzer IVs and Tigers return fire.

 The unlucky crews had attempted to fire but no luck and definitely no luck now.

 

 The sherman platoon moved to make better of the one destroyed Tiger.  The remaining 2 Tigers made quick work and revenge for losing one of their own.  Thinking the wiser the remaining Shermans move.

 

 Tigers move into the M-10s hind quarters.  One of the burning tanks was the Lieutenant.  Without a command presence, the other 2 remaining M-10s could do nothing but shoot.

 

 Another Sherman explodes in fire causing Mortar crews to hug dirt in the foxholes !  Being the third Sherman destroyed, it forced a morale check.  Fail.  Shermans leave the field.

 

 The lead M-10 errupts in flames as his sister tank killer gets bailed behind him.

 

 The final M-10 is destroyed.  He failed 2 bail in attempts before falling. This bridge should be known as "Widow Crossing" ...

 

 Another look of "Widows Crossing"

 Last photo taken as the field of battle turns to German hands.

 It was a tough yet great learning experience.  Steve played a heck of a game and being a gentleman, offered to re-roll his force.  But I like a challenge and never played against Tigers before so I declined the re-roll offer. Tanks against infantry is always tough.  But I feel playing against them makes me a better player for the games that I get running against infantry with armor support.  I also been trying to figure out the best way to use my Shermans and M-10s so this was another great chance to learn.

Some of the things I learned today ...

Never face a Tiger in a shooting match, which resulted in 2 easy kills. A 3rd Sherman fell later and the platoon left the field after a failed morale check.

I had 81 mm mortars which killing wise was not an option but I failed to use the smoke by never getting observers in positions to assist (get more eyes in position next time). 

The Assault platoon had a chance to move towards a weak recon platoon in the village (next time think about moving/assaulting with smoke cover). 

Steve was great at reviewing the final battlefield setup with me and giving advice to maximize my forces.  Every game at Steve's is great for that reason.  I learn tons.  I have always been the type to learn by making mistakes.  In fact every mistake I have made in past games has helped me in future games.

Kudos to Steve ... great game and as always a pleasure to play against ! 

Till next time ... Keep the Paint Flowing and the Dice Rolling !

Joe .... aka Mezz