Heinrich505

Thanks Erwin.  You are so right.  George makes amazing scenarios! 

Ultradave,
   I concur.  There is always some sort of twist that comes at you from left field.  It's some sort of magic that he weaves into the scenario.  If you are doing things that are doctrinally sound, you can weather it fairly well, but if you aren't preparing for it, then it's a wild scramble to adjust.  Always a challenge.
Heinrich505

Ultradave,
   I concur.  There is always some sort of twist that comes at you from left field.  It's some sort of magic that he weaves into the scenario.  If you are doing things that are doctrinally sound, you can weather it fairly well, but if you aren't preparing for it, then it's a wild scramble to adjust.  Always a challenge.
Heinrich505

Thanks Erwin.  You are so right.  George makes amazing scenarios! 

...Accidentally managed to submit before I was done.  Doggone, I hate when that happens.
   Shall we crack on, then?  The Challenger tank commander actually slipped over to the right flank and eased past the IED area on the White Route, before driving back over to cover the center.  
   While clearing buildings and moving forward, LT MacGowan's HQ rushed through a courtyard that several squads had already run through, believing it was cleared.  It wasn't, and he lost two of his command staff to a vicious ambush.  The enemy was finally blown away when one of the Spartans pushed their way into the compound and pounded the enemy position at point blank range.  I found that I had to actually take such chances at times, although always doing so while holding my breath and listening for the sound of an RPG being fired.  Sheesh!
   MacGowan was able to provide buddy aid to his fallen HQ members, and then they pushed on up the center.
   His forward scouts found yet another RPG team in a courtyard, and they initially dashed off the roof to safety, as they were rattled, but then they eased back up to the second floor and dusted the enemy fighters down below.  They contributed to the surrender, because right after this turn, the enemy gave up.  
   The Center push was looking straight down the road into the Aviemore compound at game end.  They still had quite a few blocks to go, but the main assault on Aviemore was not going to be from the Center anyway, so they were pushing forward to pin enemy forces to the front while the attack came from the right flank.
 
   On the right flank, things were quite interesting.  I had most of the heavy equipment on this flank, and I also had to figure a way around the IED emplacements.  LT Morris was commanding the engineers, and he sent forward Sgt. MacPherson's unit.  The Sgt. split his 8 men into two teams and they moved forward from the drainage ditch to work the first set of IEDs on the bridge.  Of course the enemy had ranged in artillery on the position.  I had tried to put smoke down on it, but that didn't work well.  The engineers got mauled quite a bit, with Private Middleton the lone survivor of his group of four.  He stayed on the bridge when others rushed to get inside the nearby AFV, and he provided buddy aid to his mates while artillery rounds crashed around him.  
   Having his entire squad killed or wounded, and having attended to many of the wounded himself, he would have been excused to sit back and let the battle go on without him.  But, he ended up in one of the Enforcer AFVs, working the machine gun, as he was not one to leave a fight that was still ongoing.  He also had to satisfy some pay-back.  On the last turn before the enemy decided to quit, one diehard launched an RPG that hit his Enforcer AFV, blowing up the AFV.  The driver was wounded and managed to escape, but Middleton's fate was unknown.  He probably joined his mates as KIA.
   The push down the White Route was quite successful.  At the end, I had troops ready to turn off the route and head towards Aviemore.  The lads made it down almost to the end of the map and would be assaulting Aviemore from the White Route.
   Leftenant Schaw, reportedly from the lowlands Clan Schaw, moved his group forward with care and deliberation.  His HQ was right up in the middle of things, keeping the men in command control pretty much the whole way down the route.  
   As they got past the first IED area and approached the second one, LT Schaw gave hand signals to Lance Corporal Waters' squad to check forward and left.  Waters had two lads dash forward as scouts, but they took some light fire from the left.  They made it to the next line of buildings and held up there, peering through windows to clear the building as much as they could.
   Because of the light fire from the left, the advance was held up and Waters took the remaining four men with him and rushed to the wall that surrounded a large apartment complex.  He had some supporting fire from a Spartan, and when he thought it was okay, he and his four men rushed through the wall opening towards the building where the fire had supposedly come from.  
   It was a frigging ambush, and Waters and two of his lads went down.  Denny and McDonald were the two survivors, and they dashed out of the line of fire and ran completely around the complex, stopping on the back side to catch their breath.  At this point, LT Schaw was trying to figure out who to send over there for support, as he had a full squad well forward in the drainage ditch, and only engineers nearby.
   Denny made things easier for Schaw.  I wasn't sure if the lads were foaming a little, perhaps approaching berserker status, but then things got very quiet and cold, so cold, in fact, that I could swear I could see their breath.  There was a glint of steel, and if they had broadswords, it would have been entirely appropriate.  I think the glint came off bayonets, but I can't be sure.  
   Denny and McDonald said nothing after that, but acting in perfect synchronicity, the two of them proceeded to clear all the apartments leading up to the ones where the enemy ambush had been sprung.  Then they charged into an adjacent room and dispatched everyone in one of the ambush rooms.  There was an enemy HQ unit there that never had a chance to surrender.  
   Next, the two coldly and efficiently dispatched every enemy in the other ambush room.  Together, they accounted for 7 enemy casualties.  They cleared an entire block of apartments by themselves, and afterwards, provided buddy aid to their own.  Waters was badly wounded but sent to the rear.  The other two lads were gone and only provided ammo to collect.  Denny and McDonald then joined the other two lads that had scouted forward and continued the advance, with grim looks of determination. 
 
   This was a brutal battle, but it was fun to work.  I had a lot of cool toys to play with, and the Challengers were great for blowing up walls and providing alternative openings that the enemy wasn't expecting.  In the center attack, there was a compound that looked really hard to enter.  I had the Challenger blow another entrance in a wall, and this totally messed up the ambush the enemy had planned.  The tank and Spartans then proceeded to blast the enemy with no losses to my infantry.
   There are likely other approaches to take, but moving on-line and chewing up the enemy was probably the best way to avoid a costly assault at the end.  I used the choppers extensively during the daylight, and they shot up a lot of things that I didn't see.  
   It is a big battle, and you have to manage a lot of assets, but you get to see so many really cool things as the troops work their way forward.  I'd highly recommend the battle.  Thanks for putting this together for us, George.  
Heinrich505     

@George MC
   I just finished this battle and I wanted to thank you for posting it.  It was quite an exercise, and I'm rather exhausted.  I'm pretty pleased that I got the enemy to surrender for a Total Victory, playing at Elite.  There were about 53 minutes left when the AI caved in, and I was just about to start formulating my assault on the compound that had the victory positions.  I didn't have to make the final assault, thank goodness, which would, of course, have added greatly to my casualty list.  Of course most of them didn't actually surrender, preferring to slink off into the darkness to fight again another day.
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   I didn't change up the set-up, preferring to push forward along the Yellow - Green - White Routes.  The IED setup on the White Route looked daunting, but I figured there might be a way around them, off to the sides.  My initial idea was to seek out a route that might be less defended, and maybe make it deep onto the map for an early assault on Aviemore.  I had plenty of time and figured I would push forward on three lines to see which was easiest.  As it turned out, none were "easiest," but the initial plan did have merit, because as I chewed and battered my way into the city, I was tearing away at the enemy morale, and with all the casualties they were taking, it worked out that the AI surrendered and slunk away before I actually had to assault Aviemore.
   On the left flank, Leftenant Whitesell pushed forward quickly, using the rises and falls of the terrain to get to the river fast.  Having Intel about the bridges being mined, the Scots piled out of their carriers and worked their way across the river, taking up observation positions.  Several Warrior commanders managed to ease their AFVs across the muddy stream, some bogging just a little, but all making it safely. 
   They took up overwatch, and LT Whitesell had scouts push forward towards the sets of buildings.  No one could see any enemy, and it was amazing how strong was their fire discipline.  Then they tried firing some RPGs and the lads opened up on them.  Lance Corporal Borthwick, in the best traditions of the cavalry, saw his mates being shot at and decided to charge across the frigging bridge.  Mind you, I'd sent a unit of engineers over to check the area, and they'd been swarming all over the bridge before this happened, so Borthwick may have felt that it was safe to do so.  BLAMMO!  Well, it wasn't.  His AFV was imobilized.  He was still in the fight though, and poured heavy fire into the buildings, having several RPGs barely miss his sitting duck target.
   Lance Corporal Wright decided that he was not going to try the damn bridge with his Challenger tank, and he attempted to slip his way across the small stream, only to get completely bogged down, and ignominously immobilized.  He wasn't even in any LOS to provide support.  After the battle, his mates provided him with an honorary plaque, featuring a metal engraving of a Challenger tank embedded nose deep into a bog, and given the new title of Lance Corporal "Not Quite Wright."  He blushed a bright red, probably from anger and embarassment, but he took it fairly well, staggering off drunk after the award celebration, clutching his plaque tightly.
   There were some really nasty ambushes that were sprung in this area, especially in the tree-covered ditch.  I took quite a few casualties, and every one of the lads in one squad were wounded lightly, but fighting on.  Several units were rattled, but LT Whitesell was right up in the thick of things, never lagging behind, so that probably kept the men in the fight.
   The going was slow at times, but eventually they made it 2/3s of the way across the map, having caused a lot of casualties, before the enemy surrendered.
 
   In the center, on the Green Route, Leftenant MacGowan fell slightly behind the left and right flank, but this was because of stiff resistance in that area, and no real way to cross the stream except to throw the dice and hope not to get immobilized.  He lost his command AFV in this way, and had to go it on foot from then on.  LT MacGowan tried to get engineers to check the bridges but was told they were all busy.  He had some scouts ease up around the end of the one bridge, but they were killed by enemy fire.  So, the question of the bridge being mined was not answered, and all the AFVs found a way through the muck and didn't get immobilized.  The one Challenger tank they had in support, after hearing what happened to W                                             

Thanks Elvis.
Got it and it loaded up with no problems. 
Heinrich505

...Accidentally managed to submit before I was done.  Doggone, I hate when that happens.
   Shall we crack on, then?  The Challenger tank commander actually slipped over to the right flank and eased past the IED area on the White Route, before driving back over to cover the center.  
   While clearing buildings and moving forward, LT MacGowan's HQ rushed through a courtyard that several squads had already run through, believing it was cleared.  It wasn't, and he lost two of his command staff to a vicious ambush.  The enemy was finally blown away when one of the Spartans pushed their way into the compound and pounded the enemy position at point blank range.  I found that I had to actually take such chances at times, although always doing so while holding my breath and listening for the sound of an RPG being fired.  Sheesh!
   MacGowan was able to provide buddy aid to his fallen HQ members, and then they pushed on up the center.
   His forward scouts found yet another RPG team in a courtyard, and they initially dashed off the roof to safety, as they were rattled, but then they eased back up to the second floor and dusted the enemy fighters down below.  They contributed to the surrender, because right after this turn, the enemy gave up.  
   The Center push was looking straight down the road into the Aviemore compound at game end.  They still had quite a few blocks to go, but the main assault on Aviemore was not going to be from the Center anyway, so they were pushing forward to pin enemy forces to the front while the attack came from the right flank.
 
   On the right flank, things were quite interesting.  I had most of the heavy equipment on this flank, and I also had to figure a way around the IED emplacements.  LT Morris was commanding the engineers, and he sent forward Sgt. MacPherson's unit.  The Sgt. split his 8 men into two teams and they moved forward from the drainage ditch to work the first set of IEDs on the bridge.  Of course the enemy had ranged in artillery on the position.  I had tried to put smoke down on it, but that didn't work well.  The engineers got mauled quite a bit, with Private Middleton the lone survivor of his group of four.  He stayed on the bridge when others rushed to get inside the nearby AFV, and he provided buddy aid to his mates while artillery rounds crashed around him.  
   Having his entire squad killed or wounded, and having attended to many of the wounded himself, he would have been excused to sit back and let the battle go on without him.  But, he ended up in one of the Enforcer AFVs, working the machine gun, as he was not one to leave a fight that was still ongoing.  He also had to satisfy some pay-back.  On the last turn before the enemy decided to quit, one diehard launched an RPG that hit his Enforcer AFV, blowing up the AFV.  The driver was wounded and managed to escape, but Middleton's fate was unknown.  He probably joined his mates as KIA.
   The push down the White Route was quite successful.  At the end, I had troops ready to turn off the route and head towards Aviemore.  The lads made it down almost to the end of the map and would be assaulting Aviemore from the White Route.
   Leftenant Schaw, reportedly from the lowlands Clan Schaw, moved his group forward with care and deliberation.  His HQ was right up in the middle of things, keeping the men in command control pretty much the whole way down the route.  
   As they got past the first IED area and approached the second one, LT Schaw gave hand signals to Lance Corporal Waters' squad to check forward and left.  Waters had two lads dash forward as scouts, but they took some light fire from the left.  They made it to the next line of buildings and held up there, peering through windows to clear the building as much as they could.
   Because of the light fire from the left, the advance was held up and Waters took the remaining four men with him and rushed to the wall that surrounded a large apartment complex.  He had some supporting fire from a Spartan, and when he thought it was okay, he and his four men rushed through the wall opening towards the building where the fire had supposedly come from.  
   It was a frigging ambush, and Waters and two of his lads went down.  Denny and McDonald were the two survivors, and they dashed out of the line of fire and ran completely around the complex, stopping on the back side to catch their breath.  At this point, LT Schaw was trying to figure out who to send over there for support, as he had a full squad well forward in the drainage ditch, and only engineers nearby.
   Denny made things easier for Schaw.  I wasn't sure if the lads were foaming a little, perhaps approaching berserker status, but then things got very quiet and cold, so cold, in fact, that I could swear I could see their breath.  There was a glint of steel, and if they had broadswords, it would have been entirely appropriate.  I think the glint came off bayonets, but I can't be sure.  
   Denny and McDonald said nothing after that, but acting in perfect synchronicity, the two of them proceeded to clear all the apartments leading up to the ones where the enemy ambush had been sprung.  Then they charged into an adjacent room and dispatched everyone in one of the ambush rooms.  There was an enemy HQ unit there that never had a chance to surrender.  
   Next, the two coldly and efficiently dispatched every enemy in the other ambush room.  Together, they accounted for 7 enemy casualties.  They cleared an entire block of apartments by themselves, and afterwards, provided buddy aid to their own.  Waters was badly wounded but sent to the rear.  The other two lads were gone and only provided ammo to collect.  Denny and McDonald then joined the other two lads that had scouted forward and continued the advance, with grim looks of determination. 
 
   This was a brutal battle, but it was fun to work.  I had a lot of cool toys to play with, and the Challengers were great for blowing up walls and providing alternative openings that the enemy wasn't expecting.  In the center attack, there was a compound that looked really hard to enter.  I had the Challenger blow another entrance in a wall, and this totally messed up the ambush the enemy had planned.  The tank and Spartans then proceeded to blast the enemy with no losses to my infantry.
   There are likely other approaches to take, but moving on-line and chewing up the enemy was probably the best way to avoid a costly assault at the end.  I used the choppers extensively during the daylight, and they shot up a lot of things that I didn't see.  
   It is a big battle, and you have to manage a lot of assets, but you get to see so many really cool things as the troops work their way forward.  I'd highly recommend the battle.  Thanks for putting this together for us, George.  
Heinrich505     

Good Day, Gerard,
   Thank-you for the compliment, but while I have read quite a bit about the battle, I didn't research it like the battle author, @PanzerMike.  You might be getting me confused with him, as I only did a written AAR of my play-through of the battle.  The video AAR done by @Ts4EVER was way better, because you could actually see the action along with his narrative.
   I'd suggest you get in touch with @PanzerMike for your offer of your research to detail the battle further.  I'm not much of a scenario creator.  I prefer to weave stories about the battles that are being played, from the perspective of the pixeltruppen.
   Regards,
     Heinrich505  

I love the screenshots.  We are right down in the middle of things, seeing what the groundpounders see.
I suspect that if anyone dared question the Waffen SS boys about them bugging out, their story would be that they got word there was a breakthrough to the rear and they were rushing to reinforce the defense there.  
Your quick moves to control the limited thoroughfares have well and truly boxed Elvis in.  He's going to have to make some fast bum-rushes to cross those avenues of death.  It's possible that Marshall Zhukov has already alerted the NKVD troops near Elvis' HQ that he might need some "encouragement," like looking down the barrel of a Nagant revolver.  
Great AAR!
Heinrich505

Ithikial_AU,
   That was certainly some crazy action.  The shot of the paras was classic.  There they are, slapping out the flames on their comrades and administering buddy aid.  After being hit by the flamethrower tank, I would have expected the survivors to run in panic from the location.  These two must be pulling a "Crazy Heinrich."
   Hmmm...very strange that the Volksturm changed their minds about surrender, around the time that the SS showed up.  No, no, Obersharführer, it is very warm in here und our weapons schlipped vrom our hands.  You see, vee pick them up very quickly.  No problems here.  
   Really cool pictures.  Thanks for posting and all the action so far.  It is pretty gripping.
   I'm sure those fallen KG YouTube leaders won't hold a grudge, with KG Ithikial being prominently featured in upcoming CM videos...or will they?...[muhahaha - evil laughter]
   It is a great battle, and I'm enjoying all the action and the screenshots.  Thanks to you and BFC Elvis for putting this on.
Heinrich505  

Ithikial_AU,
   That was certainly some crazy action.  The shot of the paras was classic.  There they are, slapping out the flames on their comrades and administering buddy aid.  After being hit by the flamethrower tank, I would have expected the survivors to run in panic from the location.  These two must be pulling a "Crazy Heinrich."
   Hmmm...very strange that the Volksturm changed their minds about surrender, around the time that the SS showed up.  No, no, Obersharführer, it is very warm in here und our weapons schlipped vrom our hands.  You see, vee pick them up very quickly.  No problems here.  
   Really cool pictures.  Thanks for posting and all the action so far.  It is pretty gripping.
   I'm sure those fallen KG YouTube leaders won't hold a grudge, with KG Ithikial being prominently featured in upcoming CM videos...or will they?...[muhahaha - evil laughter]
   It is a great battle, and I'm enjoying all the action and the screenshots.  Thanks to you and BFC Elvis for putting this on.
Heinrich505  

Vergeltungswaffe,
   Not sure how to do that.  Do I type in @MarkEzraand click on the name that come up in the small box?  I think I just did it, but is that the process?
Heinrich505
 

MarkEzra,
   Well, I guess I am on a roll here.  A few days ago it was an amazing battle I had to post about that GeorgeMC did.
   Today I finished playing this incredible battle, actually for the third time around.  It was such a challenge and I enjoyed it so much that I had to play it out several times.
   The first time, I was getting blown up big time, and could not get over the bridge.  I had to quit, as I was just too chewed up to continue.  However, I had been challenged by your battle, so I started it again.  Then it became clear to me, on the second try, that you had several versions.  What a cool idea.  I'm guessing you might have three all told, as I played it three times and each time was slightly different, and each time was challenging and just as much fun as the other two...well, getting chewed up big time on my first try wasn't exactly fun, haha, but it got me going and it got me thinking about "adapting and overcoming."  After all, I was playing as the US Marines.
   The map had all sorts of dangerous lines of sight to be wary of.  There were plenty of ambushes and the enemy AI was real good about holding fire until an opportune moment.  Solving the problem of the bridge was one of the more challenging and interesting facets of this battle, and it was very satisfying.
   The AI did a very credible job at giving me fits.  I was, of course, trying to keep my casualties down, just because.  But the Marines are very different from playing the Army or NATO troops.  I've hit that stretch of the battle list where I've been playing Marine battles in a row, and I've learned some of the nuances of fighting with them.  It is quite an eye opener at times.  My impression is that you can play them much more aggressively than the other types, but you have to be careful not to be too aggressive.
   My troop mix was just right, and the battle had all sorts of challenges that caused me to think quickly and on the fly, taking advantage of the different specialists.  
   The battle was very nicely done, a full blown challenge, and very satisfying when I came to a succesful end on my 2nd and 3rd tries.  I highly recommend this battle.  It's got everything, including tanks.  It is a wicked, up close, street fight, but you have to be clever in how you use your sledgehammer.  It's all the more fun because there are several versions.
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   Mark, I had to include some sort of after action report for you.  I played this battle on Elite and ended up with a Total Victory from the enemy surrendering.
   Having been blown up pretty badly on the first try, and unable to get across the bridge, I determined on the second try that I'd do something a little different.  At the start, I had both my Abrams pick a wall on either side of the bridge and start blasting away.  This put nice gaps in them for my troops, and I wasn't going to have to charge across the bridge.  Artillery did this for me a little on the first version, but I still got shot to bits.
   Then I had the tanks blast the far wall as well, giving me a way across the deep ditch and a chance to get footholds in the buildings adjacent to the bridge.  In the process, I ran Marines across the ditch to either side of the bridge, which then wreaked havoc on my command lines as the battle progressed.  Lessons learned.  I did a lot better on the third try.
   Having gotten across and into the closest buildings with assault teams, now the tricky part came in because I was taking a lot of fire from enemy positions that were opening up on me.  My tanks were able to give some support through the gaps in the walls, and that helped.  But, I was still taking casualties.  I ended up running more guys into the buildings I controlled and overwhelming the enemy positions with the tremendous firepower that a full squad of Marines put out at close range.  I started hearing Marines yelling "Put your hands up and surrender.  Move over here."  I'd never heard that before, and when I checked some of the buildings that showed enemy presence, I saw some had given up and surrendered.  Amazing!  The firepower and seeing their comrades cut down was just too much for some of them.  Shortly I started seeing white flags from those locations.  
   I fanned out a bit to both sides and managed to unpleasantly find enemy armor of both BMP and serious T-90 Tank types.  As there were still all sorts of RPGs flying around, I couldn't just rush my tanks across the bridge just yet.  It fell to AT teams that I broke off from the regular squad.  One team of two slipped down the left flank line of buildings, and rushed in the back door of one building that was near some AFV sounds.  Of course I am holding my breath as they do this, and they spot two BMPs very quickly.  Then one goes up in a wicked explosion and moments later the second one, a little further away, exploded gloriously.  Each Marine had their own shoulder AT weapon, and both got in their shots fast.
   The second wave of Marines arrived and I rushed them across the ditch, and deeper into the town, because someone (the tanks maybe) had let off a blg black cloud of smoke.  I thought black smoke was from the enemy and white was from my side, but it was definitely black and it was definitly helping me out big time.  I hadn't given any order for smoke, so I am just a little at a loss on where this was coming from.  It had to be my tanks, I'm guessing.
   I'm taking some losses as I push forward though.  The enemy would hold on with support from their armor, but as I hunted and blasted the armor ,mainly from AT teams broken off from the main squads, they became less inclined to fight and more inclined to pull back to better positions.  That was interesting, but in many cases they decided to pull back when it was too late, and my guys cut them down as they tried to pull back.
   The left flank was starting to fray, and I decided it was time to rush my tanks across the bridge.  One went left and the other went right.  The one on the left started putting down heavy support fire, which greatly helped in reducing the holdouts.  But, there was a freaking tank high up at the back of the street, and it was blasting all my attempts to get it.  I slipped a Jav team over to try and get the tank.  They were spotted and took heavy casualties.  I ran the Abrams over to try and get the drop on the tank.  It managed to uncover a BMP and blew it up, but it just couldn't get an angle on that doggone tank, and I wasn't about to give it the first shot on my tank.
   I had to drag over another Jav team, after running one of the supply trucks over the bridge and getting them reloaded with AT rockets.  I had the Abrams fire briefly near the enemy tank, as it couldn't see it, but I was hoping the enemy would be slightly distracted.  I had the HQ unit for the Jav team also accompany the Jav guys, and they snuck into position where they could see the tank.  The first rocket missed - of course, winging high as my guys were firing uphill - and I waited for the enemy tank to wipe them out, but apparently the distraction was working a little, and the Jav boys nailed him on the second shot.  Not being totally sure the tank was knocked out, in the next turn I advanced the Abrams out and it confirmed that the enemy tank was done.
   It was getting dark now, and the third wave of Marines came onto the battlefield.  My first and second waves were all mixed up, so I've got Lieutenants yelling across the battle field on both sides of the road where their squads are spread out.  It was SNAFU.  But, I ran the third wave of Marines exclusively to the right flank, making a push for the compound victory location.
   Also, I had discovered, unpleasently, that enemy armor was controlling one of the main streets that I needed to cross to advance on the left flank.  I had pushed some assault squads forward and they discovered that BMPs could put out a devastating amount of fire.  I had to address the enemy armor, which I suspected was both BMP and tanks, as the boom of a main gun was also tearing up my advance.  
   Because of the sound contacts, I had called in the chopper for that area, but as I was advancing so fast on the right flank, I canceled the helicopter, and a turn later I called for a strike on the compound instead, which meant that the timer started all over again and I was waiting another 10 minutes.  I only had about 20 minutes left in the battle.
   Knowing that there was enemy armor on the right flank, I was running some Jav teams to that side, along with the entire 3rd platoon.  I was able to advance fairly well, overwhelming some positions with firepower, but then I was slowed up, as the enemy got very determined.  I slipped an AT team through some of the buildings, and they identified a BMP and two  - yeah, two - freaking T-90SA tanks.  Then the team got blasted.  They never had a chance to get any shots off.  
   I was trying to figure out the best way to handle this situation, as time was running down, the helicopter wasn't going to help, and running men through the buildings to try and get a shot off was very risky.  I had managed to get one of my Jav teams on the roof of the near side of the buildings, but they would have to advance to the adjacent roof to get a line on the enemy armor. 
   Staff Sergeant Altman, although showing Green for experience, was more than ready to show that Marine armor in an M1A1 Abrams tank could sway the day.  He was quickly briefed about the sound contacts, and he was told that buildings to either side of an alley had been cleared of enemy infantry.  It was believed that all enemy armor was facing down the street, and would be looking away from where SSG Altman's tank would emerge.  He gave a crafty smile and said he'd take care of it.
   Then SSG Altman had his driver pull up to the alley and ease into it, while the gunner swiveled the turret to face down the alley.  There was a T-90, broadside, and facing to the left down the street.  Moments later the T-90 was blown apart.  
   The big question was now whether or not the other armor vehicles would notice that something was awry to their rear.  SSG Altman was clearly relishing this situation, and next thing you know, he had rushed down the alley and out into the street, turning the turret in the direction of the sound contacts as soon as his gun barrel was clear of the alley.  The rear of a BMP and a T-90 now presented themselves to SSG Altman, as battlefield gifts.  Neither were aware that something bad was approaching from the rear.  SSG Altman must have seen he was lined up on the BMP first, so that was the first to go, in a gigantic explosion of flame.  The enemy tank crew must have noticed this, as it was getting fairly dark now, and suddenly half the block was lit up with the light from the exploding BMP.  The Jav team had eased up to watch the show from the roof, and they said that the enemy tankers had no time to even consider something bad was about to happen.  SSG Altman's crew had reloaded and the gunner fired as fast as could be.  The enemy T-90 then exploded in flames.  Medals all around for that tank crew. 
   All three armored vehicles had been eliminated in rapid succession and SSG Altman was then moving up to help reduce an enemy position on the corner that was holding up my advance towards the compound.  SSG Altman blew a big gap in the wall of the compound and began pounding an enemy unit in the compound that had been safe moments before when there had been a wall there.   
   I had advanced my 3rd Platoon forward once the enemy AFVs were reduced to cinders, and I had them on the roof, so they could see into the compound.  They began firing at a number of enemy troops, and suddenly the battle was over.  The enemy surrendered.  There was still 14 minutes left in the battle, but the enemy had had enough and threw in the towel. 
   It was great fun playing this battle several times.  It always seemed to be a challenge and the composition of the Marines seemed to suit the street brawl situation nicely.
   Thanks for putting this one together for us to enjoy.  
Heinrich505

MarkEzra,
   Well, I guess I am on a roll here.  A few days ago it was an amazing battle I had to post about that GeorgeMC did.
   Today I finished playing this incredible battle, actually for the third time around.  It was such a challenge and I enjoyed it so much that I had to play it out several times.
   The first time, I was getting blown up big time, and could not get over the bridge.  I had to quit, as I was just too chewed up to continue.  However, I had been challenged by your battle, so I started it again.  Then it became clear to me, on the second try, that you had several versions.  What a cool idea.  I'm guessing you might have three all told, as I played it three times and each time was slightly different, and each time was challenging and just as much fun as the other two...well, getting chewed up big time on my first try wasn't exactly fun, haha, but it got me going and it got me thinking about "adapting and overcoming."  After all, I was playing as the US Marines.
   The map had all sorts of dangerous lines of sight to be wary of.  There were plenty of ambushes and the enemy AI was real good about holding fire until an opportune moment.  Solving the problem of the bridge was one of the more challenging and interesting facets of this battle, and it was very satisfying.
   The AI did a very credible job at giving me fits.  I was, of course, trying to keep my casualties down, just because.  But the Marines are very different from playing the Army or NATO troops.  I've hit that stretch of the battle list where I've been playing Marine battles in a row, and I've learned some of the nuances of fighting with them.  It is quite an eye opener at times.  My impression is that you can play them much more aggressively than the other types, but you have to be careful not to be too aggressive.
   My troop mix was just right, and the battle had all sorts of challenges that caused me to think quickly and on the fly, taking advantage of the different specialists.  
   The battle was very nicely done, a full blown challenge, and very satisfying when I came to a succesful end on my 2nd and 3rd tries.  I highly recommend this battle.  It's got everything, including tanks.  It is a wicked, up close, street fight, but you have to be clever in how you use your sledgehammer.  It's all the more fun because there are several versions.
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   Mark, I had to include some sort of after action report for you.  I played this battle on Elite and ended up with a Total Victory from the enemy surrendering.
   Having been blown up pretty badly on the first try, and unable to get across the bridge, I determined on the second try that I'd do something a little different.  At the start, I had both my Abrams pick a wall on either side of the bridge and start blasting away.  This put nice gaps in them for my troops, and I wasn't going to have to charge across the bridge.  Artillery did this for me a little on the first version, but I still got shot to bits.
   Then I had the tanks blast the far wall as well, giving me a way across the deep ditch and a chance to get footholds in the buildings adjacent to the bridge.  In the process, I ran Marines across the ditch to either side of the bridge, which then wreaked havoc on my command lines as the battle progressed.  Lessons learned.  I did a lot better on the third try.
   Having gotten across and into the closest buildings with assault teams, now the tricky part came in because I was taking a lot of fire from enemy positions that were opening up on me.  My tanks were able to give some support through the gaps in the walls, and that helped.  But, I was still taking casualties.  I ended up running more guys into the buildings I controlled and overwhelming the enemy positions with the tremendous firepower that a full squad of Marines put out at close range.  I started hearing Marines yelling "Put your hands up and surrender.  Move over here."  I'd never heard that before, and when I checked some of the buildings that showed enemy presence, I saw some had given up and surrendered.  Amazing!  The firepower and seeing their comrades cut down was just too much for some of them.  Shortly I started seeing white flags from those locations.  
   I fanned out a bit to both sides and managed to unpleasantly find enemy armor of both BMP and serious T-90 Tank types.  As there were still all sorts of RPGs flying around, I couldn't just rush my tanks across the bridge just yet.  It fell to AT teams that I broke off from the regular squad.  One team of two slipped down the left flank line of buildings, and rushed in the back door of one building that was near some AFV sounds.  Of course I am holding my breath as they do this, and they spot two BMPs very quickly.  Then one goes up in a wicked explosion and moments later the second one, a little further away, exploded gloriously.  Each Marine had their own shoulder AT weapon, and both got in their shots fast.
   The second wave of Marines arrived and I rushed them across the ditch, and deeper into the town, because someone (the tanks maybe) had let off a blg black cloud of smoke.  I thought black smoke was from the enemy and white was from my side, but it was definitely black and it was definitly helping me out big time.  I hadn't given any order for smoke, so I am just a little at a loss on where this was coming from.  It had to be my tanks, I'm guessing.
   I'm taking some losses as I push forward though.  The enemy would hold on with support from their armor, but as I hunted and blasted the armor ,mainly from AT teams broken off from the main squads, they became less inclined to fight and more inclined to pull back to better positions.  That was interesting, but in many cases they decided to pull back when it was too late, and my guys cut them down as they tried to pull back.
   The left flank was starting to fray, and I decided it was time to rush my tanks across the bridge.  One went left and the other went right.  The one on the left started putting down heavy support fire, which greatly helped in reducing the holdouts.  But, there was a freaking tank high up at the back of the street, and it was blasting all my attempts to get it.  I slipped a Jav team over to try and get the tank.  They were spotted and took heavy casualties.  I ran the Abrams over to try and get the drop on the tank.  It managed to uncover a BMP and blew it up, but it just couldn't get an angle on that doggone tank, and I wasn't about to give it the first shot on my tank.
   I had to drag over another Jav team, after running one of the supply trucks over the bridge and getting them reloaded with AT rockets.  I had the Abrams fire briefly near the enemy tank, as it couldn't see it, but I was hoping the enemy would be slightly distracted.  I had the HQ unit for the Jav team also accompany the Jav guys, and they snuck into position where they could see the tank.  The first rocket missed - of course, winging high as my guys were firing uphill - and I waited for the enemy tank to wipe them out, but apparently the distraction was working a little, and the Jav boys nailed him on the second shot.  Not being totally sure the tank was knocked out, in the next turn I advanced the Abrams out and it confirmed that the enemy tank was done.
   It was getting dark now, and the third wave of Marines came onto the battlefield.  My first and second waves were all mixed up, so I've got Lieutenants yelling across the battle field on both sides of the road where their squads are spread out.  It was SNAFU.  But, I ran the third wave of Marines exclusively to the right flank, making a push for the compound victory location.
   Also, I had discovered, unpleasently, that enemy armor was controlling one of the main streets that I needed to cross to advance on the left flank.  I had pushed some assault squads forward and they discovered that BMPs could put out a devastating amount of fire.  I had to address the enemy armor, which I suspected was both BMP and tanks, as the boom of a main gun was also tearing up my advance.  
   Because of the sound contacts, I had called in the chopper for that area, but as I was advancing so fast on the right flank, I canceled the helicopter, and a turn later I called for a strike on the compound instead, which meant that the timer started all over again and I was waiting another 10 minutes.  I only had about 20 minutes left in the battle.
   Knowing that there was enemy armor on the right flank, I was running some Jav teams to that side, along with the entire 3rd platoon.  I was able to advance fairly well, overwhelming some positions with firepower, but then I was slowed up, as the enemy got very determined.  I slipped an AT team through some of the buildings, and they identified a BMP and two  - yeah, two - freaking T-90SA tanks.  Then the team got blasted.  They never had a chance to get any shots off.  
   I was trying to figure out the best way to handle this situation, as time was running down, the helicopter wasn't going to help, and running men through the buildings to try and get a shot off was very risky.  I had managed to get one of my Jav teams on the roof of the near side of the buildings, but they would have to advance to the adjacent roof to get a line on the enemy armor. 
   Staff Sergeant Altman, although showing Green for experience, was more than ready to show that Marine armor in an M1A1 Abrams tank could sway the day.  He was quickly briefed about the sound contacts, and he was told that buildings to either side of an alley had been cleared of enemy infantry.  It was believed that all enemy armor was facing down the street, and would be looking away from where SSG Altman's tank would emerge.  He gave a crafty smile and said he'd take care of it.
   Then SSG Altman had his driver pull up to the alley and ease into it, while the gunner swiveled the turret to face down the alley.  There was a T-90, broadside, and facing to the left down the street.  Moments later the T-90 was blown apart.  
   The big question was now whether or not the other armor vehicles would notice that something was awry to their rear.  SSG Altman was clearly relishing this situation, and next thing you know, he had rushed down the alley and out into the street, turning the turret in the direction of the sound contacts as soon as his gun barrel was clear of the alley.  The rear of a BMP and a T-90 now presented themselves to SSG Altman, as battlefield gifts.  Neither were aware that something bad was approaching from the rear.  SSG Altman must have seen he was lined up on the BMP first, so that was the first to go, in a gigantic explosion of flame.  The enemy tank crew must have noticed this, as it was getting fairly dark now, and suddenly half the block was lit up with the light from the exploding BMP.  The Jav team had eased up to watch the show from the roof, and they said that the enemy tankers had no time to even consider something bad was about to happen.  SSG Altman's crew had reloaded and the gunner fired as fast as could be.  The enemy T-90 then exploded in flames.  Medals all around for that tank crew. 
   All three armored vehicles had been eliminated in rapid succession and SSG Altman was then moving up to help reduce an enemy position on the corner that was holding up my advance towards the compound.  SSG Altman blew a big gap in the wall of the compound and began pounding an enemy unit in the compound that had been safe moments before when there had been a wall there.   
   I had advanced my 3rd Platoon forward once the enemy AFVs were reduced to cinders, and I had them on the roof, so they could see into the compound.  They began firing at a number of enemy troops, and suddenly the battle was over.  The enemy surrendered.  There was still 14 minutes left in the battle, but the enemy had had enough and threw in the towel. 
   It was great fun playing this battle several times.  It always seemed to be a challenge and the composition of the Marines seemed to suit the street brawl situation nicely.
   Thanks for putting this one together for us to enjoy.  
Heinrich505

Erwin,
   It's the same as the USMC Rahadnak Valley Search SF2 battle.  When I did the topic thread title, I took the title from the briefing screen and used that for the topic thread.  I didn't realize the battle was listed differently in the Battle selection screen.  Sorry for the confusion.  They are one in the same.  I just looked on my Battle Selection Screen and it shows as:  USMC Rahadnak Valley Search SF2
Heinrich505
 
   

George MC,
   I finished playing out this remarkable scenario yesterday.  In the designer notes, you asked that if anyone had comments about the scenario, to please post them.
   This was a wonderful battle, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.  I found that I had to pull myself away from it when other things came up.  When I got really going and caught up in the battle, I'd lose track of time and suddenly wonder where the past few hours blew past.  Thanks so much for putting this one together for our enjoyment.
   The time alloted was very generous, a full 2 hours and 30 minutes.  I took this to mean that perhaps I should be wary of unexpected difficulties.  I ended up getting the enemy to surrender with 1 hour and 30 minutes left in the game.  I was playing against the AI and on Elite.  While I ended up with a Total Victory, it didn't feel that way, as I had 18 men killed and 10 wounded, losing 2 Armored Vehicles.  I had a lot of virtual letters to write.  
   The mix of troops felt just right, the enemy AI seemed to behave very competently, giving me fits at times, and the battle had a very real feel to it, with an ebb and flow that felt just right.  It was very enjoyable commanding the Marines, and they worked very well in the battle.
   The map was amazing - it really helped to draw me in to the battle.  I spent most of my time right down on the ground level, looking for elevation changes for my men to take advantage of, as well as giving them "guidance" on where to set up and overwatch.  There was a lot of building clearing, with assault teams charging into buildings while being covered by the rest of the squad.  Things looked very real.
   I'd highly recommend this battle.  It was a blast to experience, and had a very real feel and look to it.  I tracked down the actual briefing by Major Kassner that you referred to in the notes, and your version was faithful to his original idea.  I think your AI was more devious than Major Kassner might have expected though, haha.
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   Per your briefing, I split up into three sections, one going fast to the left flank, one going fast to the right flank, and one heading straight up the middle.  I put some FOs and Javeline guys on the high escarpment right there where everyone came into the map.  I had the snipers up there too.  I have to again say that the map was amazing to see.
   I had the center group stop just before the bridge into the town area, worrying that the bridge might be booby-trapped.  I ran some squads on foot into the first gully.  I also ran the right flank guys up the large escarpment there, to get some high views of the valley.  The left flank boys kept working their way over to the road, as I intended to move in on the village from the left and hold, while the center worked further forward and the right cleared the ridge lines.
   Everything was looking just fine until a command AAV blew up from an enemy rocket, wiping out Lt. Fish's HQ team, two M60 MG groups, and the vehicle crew.  A rather unauspicious start for a battle that was stressing keeping my casualties down.  Ugh.  Of course everyone now spotted the enemy rocket unit, and laid down fire on the ridge.  Just a little late, boys.  The crackling flames from the armored vehicle were a constant reminder of me messing up.
   I had everyone for the center group get out of the AAVs, and they moved slowly and methodically through the first group of buildings.  Since the platoon no longer had a commander, I ran the XO unit up to provide some sort of command presence.  I don't know if that really had an effect, as there were no red command lines.  But, the Marines were still able to split into smaller groups, and they didn't seem to suffer too much when working so independently.  That was a big relief.  
   I had only one squad and their AAV on the escarpment on the right flank, and moved the others forward carefully, now wondering what other surprises were in store.  I spotted another enemy on the far right escarpment, and immediately opened fire on them, thinking they were another rocket unit.  I also dropped arty on them as well.
   The left flank was fairly uneventful, and I'd just formed up with the 4 AAV and was beginning to move forward when a whole gaggle of enemy vehicles rolled right into my sights.  It was a crazy mad minute or two, with me scrambling to unload the squads while trying to blast the enemy trucks and the cab.  The enemy lost badly, as I wiped them all out, even the ones that were hotfooting it across the map in a frantic attempt to escape.  I wondered at the time if this might have been the main bad guy that I was tasked to eliminate or capture in the briefing.
   I had one casualty out of the mad scramble, the lead M60 gunner of one of the two MG units.  For the next 10 turns I had his two assistants try to locate him in the brush to render buddy aid.  It was maddening, because the two bozos kept walking right past him and not trying to help him.  I became suspicious that perhaps they didn't really like the guy, and were pretending to not see him in the brush.
   At this point, I was about to have the LT move over and patch up the wounded MG gunner (I figured he'd find the guy), but the team leader of the other MG unit said they'd take care of it, leaving the LT to continue to give orders to the rest of the platoon.  I found out later that the wounded gunner actually didn't get along with the other two guys, as they considered him an arrogant martinet and were trying to get moved to a different MG unit.  You just never know who you friends are, or aren't.  The other MG unit found the gunner fairly quickly, and rendered buddy aid.  
   Oddly enough, after that, even though the now two-man MG unit was registering nervous, they were consistently ordered forward on foot to support the squads, while the three-man MG unit, showing cautious, was kept in reserve.  I wonder if the LT was trying to send a message to those guys.  They got shot at a lot, later in the battle, but kept their heads down for the most part.  Hmmm....
   I was wondering what new surprises might happen, so I moved the left flank squads forward in three groups, holding the others back in good overwatch.  Soon a heavy enemy machine gun opened up, as well as an anti-tank rocket team.  That brought a rain of machine gun and grenade fire on their position.  It was good I was moving cautiously and slowly on this flank now.
   The right flank started taking fire from the small groups of buildings they were moving towards, and a lot of overwatch fire started to silence the enemy there.
   In the center, I was actually having the men clear buildings systematically, so the going was very slow, but very safe too.  I finally started to uncover small nests of enemy troops as I neared the second gully/bridge/river area.  Because I was so cautious, I was not suffering any (well, any more...ugh...) casualties in this area.  
   When the LAVs showed up, I ran one fast to the left flank, the LAV commander straight up the middle, one to the far right flank to work the ridge line, and one to stay in the right valley and work with the right flank guys who were slowly moving towards the main town, but clearing all the buildings with methodical house-to-house tactics and careful overwatch.  Having the AAVs in standoff provided a lot of firepower when the enemy soldiers finally - and foolishly - took their shots.
   My ridgeline LAV and its scouts confirmed the death of what turned out to be an enemy FO, and then cleared the far right ridgeline.  In the process, they provided some really important intel and fired on many enemy positions that they spotted.  It was a very good move having them up there.
   Several more enemy positions were spotted and eliminated, one being a pesky sniper team that ended up getting eliminated by the left flank LAV and scouts.  From this elevated position, the LAV had a clear view right down the main street of the town.  They stayed there and uncovered some more enemy AT teams as well.
   Left flank was slowly moving forward, once some enemy positions were discovered and then eliminated or forced to flee by the AAV support fire.  I really avoided using the bridges and had the AAVs ford the streams, as well as having the Marines on foot getting wet.  I pretty much had the left flank blocked off by now, and I didn't really advance further, preferring to block any enemy that might try to flee the town in that direction.
   The main push up the middle was done, moving carefully across the stream and then easing up into the edges of the town.  I had one AAV that I ordered through the gully and stream but the driver was a cowboy and raced across the bridge, exactly what I was trying to avoid.  But, he made it safely, so the next one was ordered across the bridge too.  
   On the right flank, I had reduced the enemy positions in the small group of buildings, but now there was a walled in section that I kept getting partial indicators that enemy troops were still there.  There was only one way in - through the front gate.  I didn't have any demo guys nearby.  Then the enemy inside briefly sniped one of the LAV scouts on the high ridge behind them, so I knew for sure there were in there.
   Staff Sergeant To volunteered his assault team for the first charge, if someone would smoke the entrance up a bit.  The second team gave him the thumbs up and promptly tossed smoke into the courtyard.  SSG To delayed the charge just a little, maybe 20 seconds, and then gave the high sign.  His team took off straight into the smoke and in a beeline to the first building on the left side of the entrance.  They made it in style, setting up quickly inside the building and facing into the complex, which was now pretty much smoked in.  A minute later, the second team split into two teams and one went straight through the gate and into the middle building, while the third team button-hooked right and dashed into the right-side building.
   All this was done without any command lines.  The LT was just a little further away and had only grey lines to these guys.  I was really proud of the way they handled the assault.  Once inside, they moved around systematically and cut down the insurgents without any casualties.  It was really textbook.  
   The LT was actually coordinating the move forward to the next group of buildings at this point, so I am sure he figured SSG To would be able to competently handle the operation.  The LT was right.
   The center platoon was now easing forward, with all the snipers and Jav boys in close overwatch on rooftops.  I had the one squad clear out a small neighborhood off to the right side of the main road.  It was close at first, as there really wasn't any easy way to get LOS into it, but the snipers on rooftops and some covering fire from the LAV across the stream to the right, had the enemy with their heads down.  The LAV commander then slipped off to the right on the road, exposing his vehicle but laying down some serious fire on the enemy position.  I'm not sure what happened next, but the fire team that was closest to the enemy building, and partially behind a wall, apparently didn't like the LAV firing so close to them, and when the LAV stopped their briefly fire command, these guys dashed around the edge of the wall and into the enemy building.  Luckily the two insurgents had been taken out by the LAV and the fire team was not injured.  Wild stuff.
   Then an AT team opened up on the command LAV, but their rocket missed.  They took some serious return fire and were partially knocked out.  
   I was now moving the leaderless squads and fire teams forward into the town proper, and keeping the XO team close to them.  I was really in the grass with them, taking advantage of the dips and rises, and having them properly covered.  The area they were trying to infiltrate had known enemy in them, and while the enemy positions had been blasted, it wasn't known if they were eliminated. 
   The one fire team uncovered an enemy AT unit, but the AT guy was out of rockets and started plinking away with a handgun.  The assistant didn't notice my guys fast enough, and the fire team opened up, blasting the rifle guy first (nice touch) and then finishing off the rocket guy who only had the pistol.  One of the fire team took a round in the vest, but was not wounded.
   By this time, I was pushing slowly and steadily in from both flanks, and up the middle.  I was still going slowly though, because there was a lot of movement in and around the buildings, and I was getting glimpses of enemy AT teams.  The enemy was being spotted really well from the LAV on the escartment.  They took out the remaining enemy truck, and several more enemy soldiers were cut down, prompting the enemy to surrender.  The surrender came the turn after one guy with a AT rocket took out a second AAV.  Doggone it!  Last turn and I lost another vehicle and their 3-man crew.
   The enemy gave up.  There was still an hour and thirty minutes left, but hey, a surrender is a surrender.  I did very well, pointwise, with the exception of destroying buildings, which I only did acceptably in that category.  
   It was actually great fun to run the Marines tactically in building clearing operations, and it felt very realistic.  I could have pushed forward faster, but then I would have run into some rather nasty ambushes that the AI had set up for me.  I'd say my pace of advance was just right.
   Thanks again George for another masterpiece of a battle.  It was lots of fun and put together very nicely.  As I said before, I'd highly recommend this battle.
        Heinrich505  
      

George MC,
   I finished playing out this remarkable scenario yesterday.  In the designer notes, you asked that if anyone had comments about the scenario, to please post them.
   This was a wonderful battle, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.  I found that I had to pull myself away from it when other things came up.  When I got really going and caught up in the battle, I'd lose track of time and suddenly wonder where the past few hours blew past.  Thanks so much for putting this one together for our enjoyment.
   The time alloted was very generous, a full 2 hours and 30 minutes.  I took this to mean that perhaps I should be wary of unexpected difficulties.  I ended up getting the enemy to surrender with 1 hour and 30 minutes left in the game.  I was playing against the AI and on Elite.  While I ended up with a Total Victory, it didn't feel that way, as I had 18 men killed and 10 wounded, losing 2 Armored Vehicles.  I had a lot of virtual letters to write.  
   The mix of troops felt just right, the enemy AI seemed to behave very competently, giving me fits at times, and the battle had a very real feel to it, with an ebb and flow that felt just right.  It was very enjoyable commanding the Marines, and they worked very well in the battle.
   The map was amazing - it really helped to draw me in to the battle.  I spent most of my time right down on the ground level, looking for elevation changes for my men to take advantage of, as well as giving them "guidance" on where to set up and overwatch.  There was a lot of building clearing, with assault teams charging into buildings while being covered by the rest of the squad.  Things looked very real.
   I'd highly recommend this battle.  It was a blast to experience, and had a very real feel and look to it.  I tracked down the actual briefing by Major Kassner that you referred to in the notes, and your version was faithful to his original idea.  I think your AI was more devious than Major Kassner might have expected though, haha.
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   Per your briefing, I split up into three sections, one going fast to the left flank, one going fast to the right flank, and one heading straight up the middle.  I put some FOs and Javeline guys on the high escarpment right there where everyone came into the map.  I had the snipers up there too.  I have to again say that the map was amazing to see.
   I had the center group stop just before the bridge into the town area, worrying that the bridge might be booby-trapped.  I ran some squads on foot into the first gully.  I also ran the right flank guys up the large escarpment there, to get some high views of the valley.  The left flank boys kept working their way over to the road, as I intended to move in on the village from the left and hold, while the center worked further forward and the right cleared the ridge lines.
   Everything was looking just fine until a command AAV blew up from an enemy rocket, wiping out Lt. Fish's HQ team, two M60 MG groups, and the vehicle crew.  A rather unauspicious start for a battle that was stressing keeping my casualties down.  Ugh.  Of course everyone now spotted the enemy rocket unit, and laid down fire on the ridge.  Just a little late, boys.  The crackling flames from the armored vehicle were a constant reminder of me messing up.
   I had everyone for the center group get out of the AAVs, and they moved slowly and methodically through the first group of buildings.  Since the platoon no longer had a commander, I ran the XO unit up to provide some sort of command presence.  I don't know if that really had an effect, as there were no red command lines.  But, the Marines were still able to split into smaller groups, and they didn't seem to suffer too much when working so independently.  That was a big relief.  
   I had only one squad and their AAV on the escarpment on the right flank, and moved the others forward carefully, now wondering what other surprises were in store.  I spotted another enemy on the far right escarpment, and immediately opened fire on them, thinking they were another rocket unit.  I also dropped arty on them as well.
   The left flank was fairly uneventful, and I'd just formed up with the 4 AAV and was beginning to move forward when a whole gaggle of enemy vehicles rolled right into my sights.  It was a crazy mad minute or two, with me scrambling to unload the squads while trying to blast the enemy trucks and the cab.  The enemy lost badly, as I wiped them all out, even the ones that were hotfooting it across the map in a frantic attempt to escape.  I wondered at the time if this might have been the main bad guy that I was tasked to eliminate or capture in the briefing.
   I had one casualty out of the mad scramble, the lead M60 gunner of one of the two MG units.  For the next 10 turns I had his two assistants try to locate him in the brush to render buddy aid.  It was maddening, because the two bozos kept walking right past him and not trying to help him.  I became suspicious that perhaps they didn't really like the guy, and were pretending to not see him in the brush.
   At this point, I was about to have the LT move over and patch up the wounded MG gunner (I figured he'd find the guy), but the team leader of the other MG unit said they'd take care of it, leaving the LT to continue to give orders to the rest of the platoon.  I found out later that the wounded gunner actually didn't get along with the other two guys, as they considered him an arrogant martinet and were trying to get moved to a different MG unit.  You just never know who you friends are, or aren't.  The other MG unit found the gunner fairly quickly, and rendered buddy aid.  
   Oddly enough, after that, even though the now two-man MG unit was registering nervous, they were consistently ordered forward on foot to support the squads, while the three-man MG unit, showing cautious, was kept in reserve.  I wonder if the LT was trying to send a message to those guys.  They got shot at a lot, later in the battle, but kept their heads down for the most part.  Hmmm....
   I was wondering what new surprises might happen, so I moved the left flank squads forward in three groups, holding the others back in good overwatch.  Soon a heavy enemy machine gun opened up, as well as an anti-tank rocket team.  That brought a rain of machine gun and grenade fire on their position.  It was good I was moving cautiously and slowly on this flank now.
   The right flank started taking fire from the small groups of buildings they were moving towards, and a lot of overwatch fire started to silence the enemy there.
   In the center, I was actually having the men clear buildings systematically, so the going was very slow, but very safe too.  I finally started to uncover small nests of enemy troops as I neared the second gully/bridge/river area.  Because I was so cautious, I was not suffering any (well, any more...ugh...) casualties in this area.  
   When the LAVs showed up, I ran one fast to the left flank, the LAV commander straight up the middle, one to the far right flank to work the ridge line, and one to stay in the right valley and work with the right flank guys who were slowly moving towards the main town, but clearing all the buildings with methodical house-to-house tactics and careful overwatch.  Having the AAVs in standoff provided a lot of firepower when the enemy soldiers finally - and foolishly - took their shots.
   My ridgeline LAV and its scouts confirmed the death of what turned out to be an enemy FO, and then cleared the far right ridgeline.  In the process, they provided some really important intel and fired on many enemy positions that they spotted.  It was a very good move having them up there.
   Several more enemy positions were spotted and eliminated, one being a pesky sniper team that ended up getting eliminated by the left flank LAV and scouts.  From this elevated position, the LAV had a clear view right down the main street of the town.  They stayed there and uncovered some more enemy AT teams as well.
   Left flank was slowly moving forward, once some enemy positions were discovered and then eliminated or forced to flee by the AAV support fire.  I really avoided using the bridges and had the AAVs ford the streams, as well as having the Marines on foot getting wet.  I pretty much had the left flank blocked off by now, and I didn't really advance further, preferring to block any enemy that might try to flee the town in that direction.
   The main push up the middle was done, moving carefully across the stream and then easing up into the edges of the town.  I had one AAV that I ordered through the gully and stream but the driver was a cowboy and raced across the bridge, exactly what I was trying to avoid.  But, he made it safely, so the next one was ordered across the bridge too.  
   On the right flank, I had reduced the enemy positions in the small group of buildings, but now there was a walled in section that I kept getting partial indicators that enemy troops were still there.  There was only one way in - through the front gate.  I didn't have any demo guys nearby.  Then the enemy inside briefly sniped one of the LAV scouts on the high ridge behind them, so I knew for sure there were in there.
   Staff Sergeant To volunteered his assault team for the first charge, if someone would smoke the entrance up a bit.  The second team gave him the thumbs up and promptly tossed smoke into the courtyard.  SSG To delayed the charge just a little, maybe 20 seconds, and then gave the high sign.  His team took off straight into the smoke and in a beeline to the first building on the left side of the entrance.  They made it in style, setting up quickly inside the building and facing into the complex, which was now pretty much smoked in.  A minute later, the second team split into two teams and one went straight through the gate and into the middle building, while the third team button-hooked right and dashed into the right-side building.
   All this was done without any command lines.  The LT was just a little further away and had only grey lines to these guys.  I was really proud of the way they handled the assault.  Once inside, they moved around systematically and cut down the insurgents without any casualties.  It was really textbook.  
   The LT was actually coordinating the move forward to the next group of buildings at this point, so I am sure he figured SSG To would be able to competently handle the operation.  The LT was right.
   The center platoon was now easing forward, with all the snipers and Jav boys in close overwatch on rooftops.  I had the one squad clear out a small neighborhood off to the right side of the main road.  It was close at first, as there really wasn't any easy way to get LOS into it, but the snipers on rooftops and some covering fire from the LAV across the stream to the right, had the enemy with their heads down.  The LAV commander then slipped off to the right on the road, exposing his vehicle but laying down some serious fire on the enemy position.  I'm not sure what happened next, but the fire team that was closest to the enemy building, and partially behind a wall, apparently didn't like the LAV firing so close to them, and when the LAV stopped their briefly fire command, these guys dashed around the edge of the wall and into the enemy building.  Luckily the two insurgents had been taken out by the LAV and the fire team was not injured.  Wild stuff.
   Then an AT team opened up on the command LAV, but their rocket missed.  They took some serious return fire and were partially knocked out.  
   I was now moving the leaderless squads and fire teams forward into the town proper, and keeping the XO team close to them.  I was really in the grass with them, taking advantage of the dips and rises, and having them properly covered.  The area they were trying to infiltrate had known enemy in them, and while the enemy positions had been blasted, it wasn't known if they were eliminated. 
   The one fire team uncovered an enemy AT unit, but the AT guy was out of rockets and started plinking away with a handgun.  The assistant didn't notice my guys fast enough, and the fire team opened up, blasting the rifle guy first (nice touch) and then finishing off the rocket guy who only had the pistol.  One of the fire team took a round in the vest, but was not wounded.
   By this time, I was pushing slowly and steadily in from both flanks, and up the middle.  I was still going slowly though, because there was a lot of movement in and around the buildings, and I was getting glimpses of enemy AT teams.  The enemy was being spotted really well from the LAV on the escartment.  They took out the remaining enemy truck, and several more enemy soldiers were cut down, prompting the enemy to surrender.  The surrender came the turn after one guy with a AT rocket took out a second AAV.  Doggone it!  Last turn and I lost another vehicle and their 3-man crew.
   The enemy gave up.  There was still an hour and thirty minutes left, but hey, a surrender is a surrender.  I did very well, pointwise, with the exception of destroying buildings, which I only did acceptably in that category.  
   It was actually great fun to run the Marines tactically in building clearing operations, and it felt very realistic.  I could have pushed forward faster, but then I would have run into some rather nasty ambushes that the AI had set up for me.  I'd say my pace of advance was just right.
   Thanks again George for another masterpiece of a battle.  It was lots of fun and put together very nicely.  As I said before, I'd highly recommend this battle.
        Heinrich505  
      

George MC,
  Yikes, what a crazy battle this one is.  I enjoyed the heck out of it.  Quite the challenge, as you are screwed if you go too fast, and you'll lose if you go too slowly.
  So, here are my observations and the course I took.
SPOILERS
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Per the briefing, I never considered the left flank (green) route.  The briefing also noted that the red route had a road block, so I didn't work that one either.
I split my forces into two groups, with equal amounts of BMPs to each, but more tank heavy on the far right (yellow) route.  The infantry stayed with the blue route group.  The FO stayed behind and the unmounted infantry did some initial scouting ahead.  I had the arty start dropping on the really high apartment buildings to the right of strongpoint 2 as soon as possible, to try and blunt any attacks on that strongpoint from the right side.  They also had the drone up as soon as possible and covering the right half of the map.
And...one of my tanks bogged and was immobilized within the first 3 minutes.  Great!!!
I left the attached infantry mounted for a while, as I moved the tanks up slowly (but not too slowly) and had the BMPs pretty close behind for covering fire.  I tried to keep the two columns moving at the same pace.  This worked for the most part, except that one column or the other had to stop and address the ambushes.  Some were pretty wicked, and my foot sloggers paid dearly by blundering into them.  I had to move BMPs and tanks in quickly to suppress and then blow the enemy up fast.  I actually found that the BMPs were very good at ripping apart the ambush positions, but I still had to have tanks leading.
Between the red and blue route I pushed three BMPs down that area, which was more of a wide alley.  I stumbled on some more ambush spots and reduced them, but at a price.  But, I managed to uncover some more enemy positions before they could fire on the blue and yellow routes.  So, I guess it was worth the casualties.
Once my columns hit the main cross road, they had to deal with a whole host of enemy troops trying to ambush them.  I had one tank immobilized in the intersection on the yellow route and another took a gun hit that left only the driver and no gun.  But, the enemy paid dearly and the cross street was now controlled.
I did a very poor job of managing the strongpoint troops.  I was so intent on working the columns that I neglected the strongpoints and left them to their own devices until things were really dire there.  Some of the strongpoint 1 survivors fled into nearby buildings so I had lost that position.  Strongpoint 2 was very much reduced but holding on.  This was close to the 1 hour left time.  I decided to take some chances at this point, and the streets were really dusted up badly from my columns blasting the enemy positions, so I started running BMPs through the dust and rushing them into the heart of strongpoint 2.  I rushed three BMPs and the tank with no gun into and around strongpoint 2, and cut up some enemy troops still near it. 
Then I started to rush more BMPs and one of the tanks past strongpoint 2 and out onto the red route to try and clear strongpoint 1.  I took some more casualties but I was finally able to retake strongpoint 1 with the breach teams.  With the time mark at 57 minutes remaining, I had to decide if I should load up the survivors and scamper back to my lines or consolidate my position and hold.  I had two tanks positioned on the yellow route to protect my right flank.  I had a boatload of BMPs and tanks around the two strongpoints.  The enemy didn't seem to be pushing forward any longer.  I chose to stay and hold.  
With a ceasefire at 57 minutes left in the game, I ended up with a Syrian Tactical Victory.  I was very pleased to have eeked that out.
This was a really cool battle.  There were so many nail-biting situations that I lost count and track of all of them.  If I had managed the strongpoints better, I might not have risked rushing the BMPs down the dust-clouded streets when I did.  But, since things were so critical there, I figured I had to take the chance. 
Lots of critical decisions are called for in this battle.  I never felt rushed by the game time, but I did feel rushed by the developments of the battle.  In that respect, George, you make the player change his plans on the fly and sometimes uncomfortable or aggressive decisions are called for.  When I saw my guys bailing out of strongpoint 1 and the guys in strongpoint 2 getting ready to run, I had to rush my columns and take extra risks.  I just couldn't leave them in the lurch - so I ordered the BMP guys to risk all.  
My stomach was already tightening up when I read the briefing, and I just knew things were going to get ugly fast.  I think you did a masterful job of having the AI triggered in such a way as to have the battle rise in pitch and then ease back a little for slight lulls in the action.  This really ratcheted up the tension level.
Clearly this is vintage George MC magic.  A wonderful battle, filled with tension and suspense, and tactical puzzles to be solved without losing too much of your troops blood in the process.  Thanks George for another amazing experience.
Heinrich505

Geez, some crazy action.  That was wild.  Willi got away for now, thank goodness.
 
 
Heinrich505

Phil,
  Now if you really want to do this up right, you will pull together some jeeps with 50 cal on them, and a bunch of M7 (Priest) Howitzer motor carriages with German crosses painted on their sides, along with US halftracks painted desert yellow.  Call it the Rat Patrol Mod and let them have at it on a map covered with sand dunes.
  Remember to name the German commander Dietrich...
 
 

Bud,
  Wonderful story - I loved it.  I especially liked the after-report on the players in your episode.  I was going to ask about them if you hadn't provided the epilogue.  Very nicely done!
  Personally, I liked the narrow perspective story.  I've done these previously, but used several narrow stories just in case the main one got wiped out in-game.  I congratulate you on your storyline courage, following only one group of soldiers on such a deadly battlefield.  I didn't find the story confusing because I expected not to know anything else going on around me.  I didn't refer back to the main map at all - I just went with the flow of the story.  The "confusion" seemed just right.  It was simply a squad that had been pointed in a direction by an officer and told to go there and search for the enemy.  It made sense.
  The style was nice - I didn't really need the onomatopoeia, although it would have been fine if you used it too.  Having lots of BAM! and POW! would not have been appropriate to the style you used.  The straighforward text felt just right.  Although...a KA-DOOOOOM! would be appropriate for a BMP explosion.  
  I'd say that the picture-in-picture panels suited the style nicely.  It also let you include more visuals for what was happening without lengthening the story or increasing the number of panels, because you could include more details in the same panel but staged around the main picture.  As I have no idea how to do the picture-in-picture format, just the episode with the grenade being thrown at the Tigr would have caused me to include three large pictures, whereas you were able to do this with a single picture and several smaller ones.  It saves on the overall length and also seems to focus the action more tightly. 
  Just my two cents.  The story was very well done, moved nicely, had plenty of jaw-dropping action, and kept your readers wanting more.  The last point is the one that shows just how successful your story is - we were sorry it ended and now we look eagerly for your next one.  
  Great job!  
Heinrich505

Arrgghhh...the last gasp before....????  Before What?  What else could happen?  Shrapnel from the ammo cookoff nails our last two survivors?
  Very cool story, Bud.  Loving it!
 
Heinrich505

Bud,
  Those are some crazy "mad minutes."  Nicely done.  Nah, I don't have anything against officers - I was just thinking out loud for Gorokhov.
  This is some intense action you are showing us.  
Heinrich505

Bud,
  Great stuff.  I like how the Leytenant says "we" have to scout for enemy tanks, but he's pointing to Gorohkov.  I'm sure he will lay back and delegate missions.  
  Nice to see the Tigr in its role as an AFV.  It seemed very close to that Ukranian tank that got toasted by the BMV in the nick of time, but we also know the driver is completely out of his mind, heh heh.  Maybe, too close!  Another near miss for our intrepid band of warriors.  If Gorohkov was a cat, he'd be down to 5 lives by now.  
  And, is that Russian artillery snapping down near where our happy band is running towards?  Maybe the term "Danger Close" doesn't exist in the Russian high command.   They should be hitting the ground for sure - some of those are airbursts.  Yikes!!!
  I'm still on the edge of my seat for this, Bud.  Great job!
Heinrich505