2-pounders and Tigers AAR (aka ‘mystical freak-out of carnage’): A Messianic production
Sir 37mm
Leading light of the House of (sigh) JDMorse (sigh)
Official Peng blessed, disowned, tolerated & tested Messiah of the Peng Challenge thread
Official Idjit & Primus Village Idjit Maximus
Official Potential probationary Justicar to be
Official Creator of miraculous AAR
Official Thrice disowned one
Doorknocker extraordinaire
Official ‘Angel of Peng' appointed ‘Renowned Expert on North American Beetles from err America'.
And much, much more…
Versus
Noba
…
An Oddstralian
…
…
Oh & a knight or some such
Prologue
Well it wasn’t much of a challenge if I recall… just a basic what’ ho to them on the WRONG side of the world… but that’s just the way the cookie crumbles sometimes here in the Cesspool. One thing is sure though… no matter how savage the challenge, no matter how painful the taunting or how brutal the battle the most important thing is the gloat.
But first…
A low growl reverberates through the ground, the sun beats down & what little shade the orchard provides is inadequate to cool the men down. Sweat trickles from hundreds of foreheads, flies pester, ammo is checked & prayers are said.
The dust haze reaches hundreds of feet into the air & appears to be about a kilometre away. Some of the young lads hope that it keeps that far away, the ‘veterans’ have the same hopes of course but know better.
The thunderous roar of revving engines sounds across the desert… it is time.
The enemy sends forth their armoured cars… all come under fire from multiple AT rifles many are hit but all seem to safely reach dips in the ground several hundred meters in front of our far right position (a small ‘bowl’ isolated from the rest of the force).
Enemy infantry are spotted moving on our left & right they come under sporadic artillery fire but to little effect. Oh what I’d give for some HMG’s…
Then they’re spotted, a murmur ripples through the Battalion, ‘how many?’ they ask, ‘are you sure?’ others practically scream… yes I am sure. Hesitant soldier by hesitant soldier it is slowly confirmed… multiple enemy Tiger tanks approach.
These frightful & near indestructible foes are not alone, they are escorted by a veritable horde of smaller PzIII’s & halftracks… there is nothing left to do but to hunker down & await the onslaught.
It begin on our left… the enemy had infiltrated into a ravine & prepared to cross the open ground into OUR orchard. Yet our new & mysterious commander (just arrived yesterday… some say he’s a secret weapon, some say he’s been sent by ‘higher powers’ & others say he’s stolen their beer) had fully expected this move & desperate for MG’s he’d ordered bren carriers to the edge of the Orchard. These helped the defending platoon from breaking under the relentless pressure. However the hideous foe was not done, for his tanks now flung high explosive shells across the battlefield onto our valiant defenders… yet despite the terrible toll they took on our platoon, these shells could not reach the hidden bren carriers.
Next our mystery commander ordered concentrated mortar fire on the enemy occupied ravine… it couldn’t possibly do much harm but surely it would by us time. But time for what?
Still it didn’t take long for the ammo to run out & for the enemy to unleash their most foul attack yet…
The ENORMOUS artillery shells pounded the whole of my far left platoon… it was brutally savaged but worse was to befall the bren carriers. Driven mad by the enemy fire they drove OUT of the orchard & into view of the enemy… those that weren’t torn apart by AP rounds were obliterated by the shelling as they reversed back into the orchard.
Buoyed by their success the enemy launched another assault to crush my leftmost platoon… they seemed to pour out of the ravine like, like ant’s… but not just ordinary ants… err… no, not at all. They swarmed out of the ravine like a mindless, cold blooded, relentless eruption of pure cruelty. Nothing could stop them surely?
Oh but my men tried… MG’s, rifles, grenades even bayonets were used but still they came. My men prepared for the final sacrifice… and yet….
“Is it not strange how the Earth trembles Egbert?”
“Tis the enemy sire, they rend the air with their foul oaths”
“Eye, I can well believe that… but doth that not seem so strangely queer to thee?”
“Now that thy mention it *Egbert at this moment is removing an appendix from a disgusting German* it does seem to be coming from behi…”
And the Orchard was ripped asunder by three great Goliaths, their machine guns blazed & the brave Brit’s prepared for destruction but the unwavering hail tore not into them but instead into the despicable German’s. HE shells drove back the Germans into their ravine & for the rest of the battle they (being reinforcing M3 Lee’s) kept up their fire… still safe within the orchard.
Oh but if only that was the end of the story & not just the beginning!
You see the enemy were not content with their lamentable plot to take my left flank for they had yet another force & it bared down on my right flank with naught but evil intentions.
My far right position was isolated but it was… err… not alone for many AT rifles now sounded out & enemy half tracks began to break down. And then the heavy guns from afar boomed & the Germans were wreathed in fire & iron… all were driven into the ground by the rain of 25 pound shells.
And yet our mystery commander was not done for he ordered three more reinforcing Lee’s to the forward lines of the central orchard sector. From here they could fire remorselessly on enemy vehicles & yet they were protected from return fire by their own armour & from the dreaded 88’s of the Tigers by the Orchard… praise be!
In an act of incredible folly the enemy Tigers now changed direction. Instead of driving towards my far right objective they would drive parallel to the orchard line & engage the central Lee’s… the fool.
Of course, the Lee’s reversed back into the orchard leaving the Tigers stranded… sure they occupied themselves by firing high explosive at any AT rifle or AT gun they saw (one little 2-pounder managed to penetrate a Tiger five times, but to little effect) but in the meantime, in a move worthy of Caesar, the commander brought forth his third & final platoon of Lee’s this time on the right flank of the Orchard.
They & the AT rifles poured fire into the enemy, many Panzers were slain & half tracks abandoned but the price was heavy. Two of my Goliaths were ruined by return fire & this allowed more insidious panzers & their demented escorts to attack the ‘bowl’. The enemy were dealt with however by AT guns, very close artillery fire & mortar fire… the attack on the far right was over.
Desperate & outmanoeuvred the enemy should perhaps have withdrawn to lick their wounds but this was no ordinary foe… possessed with a malicious & deranged will he called forth yet more demons… sorry Germans. This time their intention was to attack the rightmost corner of the orchard, for it had been weakened by Tiger fire. They were met, of course, by the fire of select units of the British Battalion (which was still mostly intact) as well as the third Lee on our right flank and quickly driven back. The Tigers began to withdraw & the battle ceased to be called such.
Epilogue
And so a major victory for the forces of me against the forces of others… Hip, Hip Hooray!
Still I suspect the CM engine may have been tampered with by Noba for the game miscalculated our end forces to make it look like the defenders outnumbered the attackers!
A ridiculous suggestion and a very low trick indeed (praise be!).
Some here may ask how any one man can lose the same scenario fourteen times in a row & yet Noba has managed just such a feat (apparently he’s also losing on attempts 15 & 16)… this is an act of considerable & glorious folly… I would be proud to take Noba as a disciple for such unrelenting numbskullery is surely Pengful.
Praise be! Noba of the wrong side… just take a piece of my red string and I’ll anoint you with the holy water forthwith!