CMPzC Normandy '44 Caen Operation - Axis HQ

[A Canadian Cat]

I watched that turn. That Stuart was shaking in her boots. The crew must've filled out those last letters to their loved ones.

I was pleasantly surprised to see that all your troops are REGULAR. The benefit of a high-fibre Wehrmact diet I suppose. I think you have maybe a half-dozen panzerfausts in your units here and there. One of those squads out toward the west had 2 and a rifle grenadier.

Make these hockey players pay for every inch of Buron!!!

If he keeps running those Stuarts like that I will take them out. So, lets hope. Agreed the men are in pretty good shape not a lot of experienced leaders which concerns me since there are quire a few out of command but there is not much choice with so few men and so much ground.

[A Canadian Cat]

Look to my coming at first light on the fifth day.

Five days, what are you doing stopping for Brats every house along the way?

[Rokko]

I like seeing actual battles fought on this map a lot! Really nice.

Am I correct that there were no German forces in St.Contest on the operational map?

[A Canadian Cat]

The two Stuarts from the North road pass by Schmidt's team again. One following the flanking Stuart and the other coming really really close. The tank ended its turn just across the road from the scouts.

The flanking Stuart drove further and further away this turn. I have no idea what it is doing but it did not come close to my men at all. Here is a magnified shot showing the view from the squad I sent to greet it. Look at the overview picture to get a true idea how far away it is.

Schumacher's team can really see the coming storm now.

Here is the overview. Note the infantry - looks like two companies coming from the North across those fields. I still have no idea what that smoke screen is hiding. Schumacher's team will see anything that comes through that bocage line.

The closest infantry is now 350m away. Time to pull back from the scouting positions and take up fighting positions for when they get closer.

Schmidt has decided to bundle up his four grenades and go after that Stuart. He and his squad mate have to cover less than 20m behind the Stuart to pull off the close assault. From behind a buttoned up tank - these are about as good odds as you can get - I wish them luck. If the tank turns around to move to a new location they should cover the distance before it has moved. However if it drives down the road Schmidt could be standing out in the open getting gunned down.

[kohlenklau]

This could be you Schmidt!

[A Canadian Cat]

This could be you Schmidt!

Nope alas it was not to be. The tank did the worst thing possible - it started to drive down the street leaving Schmidt standing out in the open. Luckily for him the AT gun crew got the kill. Unluckily for him another Stuart has appeared on the scene. More to come in the next post...

[A Canadian Cat]

My men get first blood. The AT gun opens up on the infantry crossing the field. The first round drops in the middle of contacts but I do not see any one go down (hopefully we just cannot see the havoc it caused). The second round however scores.

Those three spotted Stuart tanks start firing at random places. At first I thought they had spotted the AT gun but the MG rounds were a bit off and kept coming.

Un-phased my crew return fire. First round is high. Second round hits home. So does the third but there is no need. No one gets out of the tank.

Schmidt's scout team end up all alone in the open hitting the dirt from all the explosions. They also hear another previously un-spotted Stuart near by. They need some luck to get back to cover next turn.

My squad sent to greet one of the Stuarts fired two rifle grenades - both missed.

[A Canadian Cat]

Schumacher's team spots infantry who have come through the smoke screen. If you look really closely you can see on guy in the middle of the field and two going through a gap.

They will stick around for another minute or so and then pull back to fighting positions.

Clearly rifle grenades are not going to cut it at these distances. I get one of the Shrek teams to move up and be ready.

[kohlenklau]

Fantastic job Ian!

Try to use almost all your 50mm ammo, then dismount and pull the 2 crews back as infantry.

To the last round.

FESTUNG BURON!!!

Ist ein Fuhrerbefehl!!!

[A Canadian Cat]

Sounds like a plan. Normally I would try to restrict the AT guns to firing at tanks and other vehicles but since in this battle we have nothing else that can throw HE around I decided to let them go weapons free.

[A Canadian Cat]

Well Schmidt managed to escape. He as his team mate crawled back to the bocage and then ran down the road a short distance before doubling back to get back into a scouting location.

The squad that fired rifle grenades at that Stuart take return fire. The Stuart is right on target but my men are un harmed.

The North AT gun keeps firing at the approaching infantry and their MG42 joins in. I have no specific siting of casualties this turn but they must be feeling it a little.

From my scouts I can see that one company had come into the village through the smoke screen.

And it looks like two more are coming across those fields.

So far it looks like the assaulting force consists of a battalion of infantry and a platoon of Stuarts. Interesting. Still a difficult fight ahead but I like those odds better than what I was expecting. I keep forming 1 platoon into fighting positions to meet the infantry that are coming. No real changes in orders this turn.

[kohlenklau]

Don't forget to spike the guns when you withdraw. I don't want our Pak38's on display in Ottawa someday!

[A Canadian Cat]

LOL Roger that.

[A Canadian Cat]

This was a pretty quite turn. The one thing that bugged me was I kept hearing explosions and yet none of my men were under fire. It took me a few run throughs to figure out what was happening. The fourth Stuart that has not been fully spotted yet was firing at the high wall at the Easter edge of town. Odd. All that gets him is access to a field with only one other exit - on to the North road but you can access the North road from the end of the wall.

I really don't get what this is about. If tanks go through that wall they come out on the road right in front of that burning Stuart.

Schmidt makes it to saftey.

Over near the first AT gun Horter's men open up as well. No confirmed kills but those guys in the open have be concerned.

My forward scout teams continue to pull back to fighting positions.

Here is the overview.

I believe I see the enemy's plans forming. It looks like we are facing a battalion. Each company is assaulting the village from the North but the intention is to surround us. It looks like the Stuart tanks' job is to keep us from leaving and perhaps join the fight later.

Well, news flash that is what I figured would happen which is why their final fighting positions are back to back bocage fields defensible from all directions.

We will go down fighting and take as many of them with us that we can.

[A Canadian Cat]

I should have posted this first off. Her is the break down of forces along with names.

Platoon 1 Gelband

	1 squad Horter

		Schumacher - scout team

	2 squad schafer

		Reiser - scout team

	3 squad Kraft

		Robbe - scout team

	1 team Hornung

	2 team Ober

	AT squad A (gun) Ruppertz

	AT squad B Schussel



Platoon 2 Kraft

	1 squad Haberfellner

		Hartenstein - B team

	2 squad Zimmermann

		Schmidt - scout team

	3 squad Penzel

	1 team Dietzel

	2 team Altner

	AT squad A (gun) Beerbauer

	AT squad B Jacob

As you can see I broke off five scout teams initially. Beerbauer's AT gun team have the Stuart kill and Ruppertz's team have been firing at the number 2 Company in the open field.

Note. I have no idea what the enemy companies are numbered I'm just calling them 1, 2 and 3 company.

[A Canadian Cat]

Another quite turn. My men take very little fire. In fact the only fire happening is at nothing (that is one of the Stuarts way back there):

Or breaking a wall. Here you can see that it does not get them much. I do see now that if they breach a second wall they can get further but they still have only one way out on to the North road at that farm.

This is the view from 1 platoon Gelband's command post.

I make one tweak this time. I am sending 1 Platoon 3 squad (Kraft) West to shoot at the flanking enemy. They will get into a place where they can send some rounds out and then pull back. I want my enemy to continue to shoot at nothing. So, I need him to think it is not nothing.

I find it interesting that I have not had any artillery dropped on me this game. I hope that is a good sign.

[kohlenklau]

Kampfgruppe Baneman

[A Canadian Cat]

Sweet. Is that what is coming to save me

[kohlenklau]

Our operational turn happens as soon as your battle ends. We will assault into Objective Hex Buron with as much as we can carry. Probably those 4 platoons of PZIV and 2 companies of infantry. That maxes out the stacking limits and to make sure movement points are OK, 2 of the tank platoons will be different than the posted image to make sure they are green lower left corner when they enter the hex south of Buron.

No other commanders have apparently stepped up to fight a CM battle, so you can go again after Herr Baneman. I might be busy in Belgium...http://www.battlefront.com/community/showthread.php?t=110957

[Baneman]

Sweet. Is that what is coming to save me

Coming, yes.

Saving you ... is still in doubt.

But don't lose heart

[A Canadian Cat]

Coming, yes.

Saving you ... is still in doubt.

But don't lose heart

I keep tell my men help is on the way to keep their morale up.

[A Canadian Cat]

Not much changed again. The AT gun and the nearby MG42s fired at the infantry.

One new development was a previously unspotted Stuart tank appeared on the North front and proceeded to unload on one of the Shrek Teams. They are now pinned but unharmed. The thing that is strange is that the Stuart would have had to pass right in front of one of the key hole LOS locations the AT gun has.

I will get the Shrek team to pull back a bit and wait for a target before crawling back.

This is why the Stuart was able to get past the AT gun - the gun's LOS changed after setup. During setup you saw the two directions this gun had visibility. Now it does not. Notice the blocked colour starts right at the bocage line so the gun cannot see out of the field in that direction. I very specifically sited that gun so it could fire in that key hole. I hate it when that happens.

[A Canadian Cat]

Exciting developments - I now know precisely were two prongs of the attack are coming from. Kraft's 3 squad I sent to meet the Western most advance just about ran into an artillery barrage. If I had sent them there one minute earlier they would have been right under that.

More artillery shells land on - nobody. But it tells me which field the enemy are planning to enter. Not just because of the artillery but also the access points.

First I get Kraft to back 3 squad away from the artillery. He will be ready when the enemy arrive.

The squad that was hoping to attack a Stuart needs to be redeployed to face the infantry that are coming. I will move one of the Shrek teams to take their place and keep and eye on those Stuarts.

This is where they will form up to defend against the enemy coming in via that farm. Through that tan field next to the orchard.

[kohlenklau]

Sturmbannfuhrer Ian, come in, over...

Buron, Buron, how copy? over

Buron Buron

Did you receive the truckload of Claymore Mines I sent back through the time portal?

A big brown truck with the letters U-P-S on the side..

Put the mines in the trees!

out.

[A Canadian Cat]

Did you receive the truckload of Claymore Mines I sent back through the time portal?

A big brown truck with the letters U-P-S on the side..

Put the mines in the trees!

out.

Crap now you tell me. My guys opened the truck and started opening the packages and one went off and killed three guys. Now no one will go near the truck.