Bil Hardenberger

The Tenth Minute The ATG Finally the crew of the ATG wake up and rotate the gun in order to engage my Sturmpanzer. Note the red circles indicate the position and move to a new position for the Jpz IV. The gun's activity would prove far too late... ..first the Sturmpanzer fires and hits directly in front of the gun. Then the Jpz IV fires, hitting on target knocking out the gun. Immediately after destroying the ATG the Jpz IV spots what looks like a bunker far in the the enemy's rear area. I'll keep an eye on it, but this isn't a concern for me at this stage. It does add to the intelligence picture however. 2nd Squad, 3rd Platoon creeps up the Right Tit objective, near the top a mortar round hits.. shrapnel from this round takes down two members of the squad. My first casualties... I'm sure there will be more.

Created manually in Photoshop

You are preaching to the choir. I agree he needed to fight me for the Left Tit... an HMG, Bazooka, etc. fighting a mobile delay type action could have really made me pay for this objective. He could have a TRP on or near the Left Tit.. I expect he does that is why I am not dawdling on the objective.

The Ninth Minute The Jpz IV took one last shot which went high before it reversed off that crest. That AT gun has still not reacted.. could he really not spot me up on Hill 130? At least he should have a covered arc onto that hill... but it remains looking down into the right side valley. Well, now I have the Sturmpanzer in position to lay some area fire onto the ATG position.. it should be much more effective than the Jpz IV was. And yes it's hulldown. This is why I am not a huge fan of ATGs... once in position they are pretty much stuck there. I would rather spend a bit more and get something mobile like an M-10. Won't get as many but they would be infinitely more flexible. As A Team comes around the corner of the Left Tit it comes under some small arms fire and hits the dirt. I only heard either one or two rounds coming in at a time.. so we are talking about either a two man recon team or something else.. maybe a sniper (probably not, the firing is not very effective)? There are only a few spots that fire could have come from and I am moving on those this next turn. At the end of the turn what appears to be a spotting round (medium mortar?) hits on the road that runs between the tits but closer to the Left Tit (a bit beyond it actually)... looks like he has a mortar barrage coming in on the Left Tit... smart. I will be off of it very quickly next turn however... he might catch one squad or team but everything will either be in front of that hill or reversed off (the halftracks are backing off a bit). Here is the latest SITMAP showing my current positions. Also note the position of the enemy ATG.. sure looks like it was placed to cover the right valley approach. Note also that my left side Brummbar is repositioning to link up with 1st Platoon in order to better cover the S-Ridge.

They need to be 32 bit for sure as they each have an Alpha channel.

The Eighth Minute Well... it is now looking like the Left Tit is unmanned. One more turn and I'll know for sure.. but it does not look like GaJ has anything here. My two teams can now see into the rear of this objective and nothing is in sight. Even some empty foxholes sit behind the barrier. In my opinion a barrier with nothing to cover it by fire is no barrier at all. Interesting. Here is where I am on the Left Tit... 2d Squad is still hunting around the base while 1st Platoon organizes for their movement over the top. CONTACT! Back on Hill 130 my Jpz IV spots an ATG on the Spur objective! It's good to finally see some hint of the enemy after 8 minutes. Right at the end of the turn the Jpz IV fired at the ATG.. the round fell just short. Next turn should be interesting. I am really surprised this gun didn't spot me first...

touché Cogust!!

John yeah that was my thinking as well. Seedorf81 I'll see what I can do to make it a tad more exciting for you. Actually this game should speed up once I have captured these first two objectives.

Vark, no that is t even a consideration at this point. I am simply placing it where I think it will be most useful and worrying for the enemy. I love the height of the road versus the S Ridge. I would love to clear it (S Ridge) of any enemy influence. That would simplify matters considerably.

Nothing negative.. I'm just not a fan of Kandinsky and his ilk.. I have realist leanings and consider most modern art to be more decoration than art. Van Gogh of course I have much admiration for, his bold use of color and the brush have always awed me. Back to the game.. any thoughts so far (no intel leaks please )?

Yeah sorry I missed this question originally.. I'll take note of their ammo load outs next time I'm in the game.. but Seedorf81's numbers sounds correct. As for rate of fire I know this.. the Elefant could reload and fire a second round in 10 seconds, and the Brummbar got one round off in it's 15 sec firing window (fire briefly), so perhaps 20 seconds for the Brummbar.. when I'm in a position to fire more than one round in a turn I'll take note of its rate of fire.

The Seventh Minute 2nd Squad is very close to the top of the Left Tit, B Team is just over the ridge on the other side of the halftrack. This overview shows the next moves... 1st Platoon will assault over the top of the Left Tit 3rd Platoon (minus the 2d Squad) will assault over the top of the Right Tit The Elefant will advance to a position where it can oversee most of the S-Ridge objective. Not shown, my right side Sturmpanzer will place one round into the rear area of the Left Tit. Detailed view showing the Elefant new position and also showing that it will be partially hull down and can overwatch a good portion of the S-Ridge. Also the dismounted team from 2nd Platoon can now overwatch this same sector and I think as far as Hill 126.

Kandinsky? That tells me a lot about you Jason.

The Sixth Minute I'm convinced now that GaJ is on the reverse slope now as my dismounts are very close... so I am pushing 1st Platoon all the way to the Left Tit while maintaining suppression fire with 3rd Platoon. As soon as they are ready I'll be going over the top. No doubt GaJ is on the reverse slope on the Right Tit as well.. so I have targeted briefly with my Sturmpanzer on my right. He is targeting the reverse slope of the right tit of course in order to suppress anything that might be there and keep them from interfering with the assault on the Left Tit.

You are almost out of ammo Phil!

I wasn't looking for that either Michael.. the similarities just struck me is all. Bil

snake-eye were you an intel analyst? That was my job in the Army.. however you cannot come to an educated guess unless you actually have some enemy information.. currently I have no information other than what the terrain provides so my initial movements are all terrain focused... once I start to come to grips with the enemy force I will make my decisions based on those. Bil

Thanks to Rocky and Ken for the assist. Yeah I was going to respond but thought better of it.. you guys know me by now, I think I have a fairly good handle on how to manage these battles. Win or lose I prefer to do it on my own terms. That being said I do love the back and forth and as long as you are not suggesting or providing intelligence, all other comments are welcome and encouraged. I'm still collecting facts, until I get a picture of GaJ's defense I cannot make a decision on how to really begin to dismantle it.

This at least is in the game already... if you select an on board asset its base will flash... of course you need to be hovering over it to see it, but it is a tool that already does exist. Bil

Yes the left side of the map interests me greatly as well.. the S Ridge worries me as it could be a great base for an AT defense and the depression behind it could hide a Company of armor... however where I disagree with you is regarding the road. It could potentially split my force in two parts if I advance down the valleys on either side.. that would make it difficult for one force to support the other if necessary. Additionally, the road is a higher elevation than the S-Ridge and the Spur objectives.. this means that anything I have on top will be looking down on them and I should be able to find some nice hulldown positions on that ridge. I also think he might be expecting me to advance through the valleys but the more I look at them the more I am getting convinced that they could be costly if he has armor or ATGs lining the flanks of them, I know I would so why wouldn't he? I'm not saying that I won't advance through them.. but I will feel safer if I can support from a superior position on the ridge road. The ridge road also allows me to keep my force on interior lines and allows mutually supporting maneuver wherever I need it. With the Elefant up there and the Panzer Platoon nearby I can quickly react to any movement that GaJ attempts on either side of the map. From the Ridge Road I can assault the Spur objective from the flank rather than the front.. which obviously would be best. It could also unhinge his defense if he is oriented towards a right valley approach by my forces. I will need to determine how mined up the road is.. but there is no way he could afford enough mines to close it completely... and I have my Pioneers to clear a way through any obstacles as required. Once I finally get to the other side of the Tits I will have a better idea of what I am up against... and these objectives could give me some valuable clues as to how GaJ plans on defending his objectives. Finally, there is no need to hurry... with over an hour to fight yet I can afford to take this initial movement to contact stage carefully and deliberately. Anyway.. that's my thinking on the subject! FWIW

The Fifth Minute A few more barricades come into view on the Left Tit.. so GaJ might have placed them straight across both hills.. attempting to block them from vehicular traffic perhaps? Well, that is why I brought along a platoon of pioneers. After 5 minutes and still not a sign of enemy forces anywhere on the map. He is staying low.. and I am getting more and more convinced that he has something nasty waiting for me on the reverse slopes of the two tits. I am staying cautious however. Here is a nice shot showing B team from 2d Squad advancing by rush while the covering fire passes overhead. I made a little error last time I gave my orders.. I had moved the target line of all of my support by fire units to better cover the ridge on the Left Tit and accidentally gave the Elefant a target order instead of target light... so they threw away several rounds this turn. Damn. Pretty impressive rate of fire however, around 10 seconds between shots. Here is the advance plan for the two teams from 2d Squad. They are advancing by rushes and then go over to hunt when they get within 100 meters. Elsewhere the recon kw's are pushing deeper into their zones.. the left most kw has reached the edge of the wood line and will be dismounting next turn in order to continue on foot. The Jpz IV has reached the top of Hill 130 and begun its vigil. 1st PzG Platoon has almost completed its movement and the squad from 2d Platoon has split off a recon team and started on its way to reconnoiter the center of the left side. All is quiet.. except at the Left Tit.. it isn't a very subtle attack and I'm sure he knows I'm coming... it could get tense I believe in the next few turns. Finally, I told you earlier that I would update these overlays as I received more information.. so here is the updated Obstacle overlay showing the recently discovered barriers on the Left Tit and Right Tit objectives:

The Fourth Minute 2nd Squad continues its slow bounding advance towards the Left Tit objective. Each team has staggered pauses built into their movement path so one of the teams will be stationary and overwatching while the other moves. They are moving towards unknown enemies so I am taking great care of them. Looking at this image I think I am starting to understand why I like this lighting mode so much.. the screenshots give the appearance of an Andrrew Wyeth painting.. one of my favorite artitsts. They do uncover some obstacles on each Tit objective... note that each of these has a gap.. could there be mines there? Interestingly the obstacles on the Left Tit are on the reverse slope.. is he planning a reverse slope defense for these? That would be a good idea except my right side Sturmpanzer can see onto the reverse slopes of each of these little hills. These views are looking back towards my forces (South). Here is a view of some of the support vehicles for the assault on these objectives. Note that 1st Squad's halftrack is mostly hidden behind the building, and the Platoon Leader halftrack and the Elefant are both hulldown. My mortar in support never fired its smoke mission... unfortunately it's view was blocked by 1st Platoon's halftracks as they motored on by. Speaking of 1st platoon.. did I neglect to mention that the Platoon Leader is driving around in a fancy 251/10? I have decided to move my Jpz IV to the crest of Hill 130 finally. This will close the ridge road (or about 75% of it) to enemy traffic as he will have LOS to most of it's stretch. From this position he will also have a great view of the Spur objective, into S. Maria Infante itself, and onto the Hill 172 and Observation Point ridge. The depression behind the Spur will still elude my view however. This move might force GaJ to commit something before he is really ready. We'll see.

akd that is a great resource! Slow loading, but cares?

Mingan, I got this one from a fellow tester. Sorry I don't have any links handy to give you but they are available, sometimes in written histories (many of those online), sometimes you can get lucky and find a good period topo map on line. Sorry.. that wasn't much help was it?

The Third Minute 2nd Squad, 3rd Platoon begins to edge closer to the Left Tit objective. Here is the situation on the approach to the Left Tit objective. 2nd Squad is dismounted and hunting forward to try and get GaJ's troops on the objective to open fire so I can have a target to hit with my support weapons. The 2nd Squad halftrack is slowly following them in order to suppress anything that engages the dismounts. 1st and 3rd Squads are still mounted and their halftracks are laying suppression fire on the ridge of the objective. (edit: there is an error in this image, the halftrack on the right is actually 3rd Squad, not 2nd) The Platoon Leader halftrack and the Elefant are both also joining in and laying MG suppression fire on the Left Tit objective. The mortar team in direct support is laying a smoke screen between the tits to isolate the Left Tit. 2nd Platoon's 1st Squad will dismount and start moving to a jump off position so it can reconnoiter the left side. The sit map for this turn shows several things: I have a team in a kubelwagen on each side moving out for some mounted recon. I wanted these teams to be mounted, but did not want to risk a halftrack with this duty. 1st PzG Platoon is moving up and taking up a position to the rear of 3rd Platoon, in order to either pass through them or support them as the situation warrants. It also illustrates the movement occurring to the front of the Left and Right Tits.