Penry

Turn 7 Not as bad as last turn, but not as good as I'd like it to be! Where to start? Let's start on a possible high shall we? I managed to get five mortar rounds to land close to BDs southern R35. The last time I had a visual on it was about 5-10 seconds before the first round landed and the commander was out of his cockpit. The R35 certainly didn't move forward from its position, so it can only have stayed put or gone into reverse. If the commander stayed out then I think I must have had a fairly good chance to have hit him with a bit of shrapnel. I've got to take positives when and where I can, but I won't be counting this as a certain kill until it's obvious that I've bagged my second commander. i.e. The R35 isn't firing at an obvious target. More mortar joy around the farm. My mortar team who were shifting targets to BDs northern R35 fired two more rounds at the farm before shifting their tube. One round was already in the air, so three more rounds landed at the farm. I doubt I caught anyone with these rounds, but it might just have given BD something to think about, and may just be keeping a few heads down at the farm. The same team got two rounds off 'at' BDs northern R35, but the first was way long and I even questioned if I had designated the correct target. The second was in the air as the turn ended, so we'll see next turn if the first was just an unlucky shot.....

Orders: Mortar boy - run down hill with mortar tube!!!! :runaway: Mortar team - switch targets from farmyard to northern R35 (red line and cross) Mortar team 2 - continue trying to get a shot close to southern R35 (yellow line and cross) MMG team - move to field corner a redeploy to cover flanking attempts from north forest (white lines are firing arc) Runaway halftrack - break through fence and rejoin gang by building (black arrow) MMG halftrack - dismount passengers - one MMG team to woods by bridge and one MMG team to helf way to bridge woods (green arrow and cross). HQ support to south forest border (blue arrow) Rifle squad halftrack - dismount - rifle team to half way up hill. Halftrack to twist and turn back to riverbank. Expected plan success rate 0.7%..... :cute:

In amongst all the schenanigans that were going on, someone, who knows who, managed to get some intel on the second bridge defences. Not much, but at least it is something to shout about this turn. I know where your bunkers are BD!! In other news, my left track halftrack pegged it down the hill at full speed. No wheelies, no catastrophes, no mass suicides, no cowardly dessertions, just pegging it down the hill at full speed like a cop late for the doughnut pickup on a Friday night! Poor old mortar boy missed the bus though and will next turn give a demonstration in the classic fighting withdrawal armed with only a mortar tube...... Other than the above there wasn't a great deal going on, which can only rank as a huge success on my part! I dod have three mortar rounds land, one right next to BDs newly discovered bunkers at the farmyard (which was sure to result in at least some stained trousers on BDs behalf) and two 'near' BDs R35 to the south. When I say 'near' it is purely a relative term. The first was waaaaaaay to the rear, and might have taken out his tea lady. The other was to the front, but still out of expected injury causing range, but you never know, maybe the Combat Mission gods were feeling sorry for me?

Turn 6 Well, what a disasterous turn that was! It think I prefer being on the defensive. I think I'm being far too hasty about this. I never was the worlds most patient person..... I was looking forward to seeing some smooth action from my newly arrived halftracks, instead I got some highly distilled chaos, panic, stupidity and ignoring of orders. Awesome, I thought BD was in command of the 'weaker' troops..... Where to start? Let's get the worst out the way shall we? One of my rifle sqaud halftracks headed off up towards the southern forest. Midway to it's destination it started to take some small arms fire. Soon after it veered off course to the right as more small arms fire started peppering its side armour. First one casualty was suffered, then another, then another. The driver sped up and veered further off course, heading straight for the forest. Did he stop as he got close to the trees? Did he ever! No, panicking he tried to climb the steep bank that bordered the forest, managing to ground itself in the process, revealing all the riflemen inside to the small arms fire that picked them off one by one. It wasn't long before the halftrack itself sustained a killing shot either, as the couple of men still alive in the halftrack ran for their lives. By the end of the turn I had one infantryman left, running scared into the woods..... Then I had the MMG halftrack that was heading for the woods by the first bridge. It all started so well, they got 3/4 of the way to their destination, then decided to slam the breaks on and reverse most of the way back to their starting location. At least they didn't decide to practice their wheelies in the middle of the battlefield! I think the cause of the sudden change in mind was that they spotted a new cluster of bunkers at the edge of the farmyard, but if they panic at the sight of some holes in the ground what are they going to do when they catch sight of the AT gun? At least they managed to get some more intel. At least they managed to stay allive and in one piece! Here is the latest info I have on the farmyard defences. HQ halftrack decided to spend the entire turn in place - at least that's what I ordered them to do. Trouble is they also spent the entire turn firing their forward mounted MG at BDs left rear R35. You know, the one that I took out the commander of a couple of turns ago. All very impressive watching the rounds ping of the front armour at all different angles, but not very productive. At least BD must think I still think it is still a threat! At least BD must think that my men are a hopeless bunch of *****! At least BD must think that I must think that my men are a hopeless bunch of *****! Does life immitate art, or does art immitate life? If a tree falls over in the Combat Mission universe and there isn't anyone around to hear it, does it still make a sound? All these things and more go through my mind when I try to review a really tragic turn...... \ Last, but not least, was the other rifle squad halftrack, the one that was supposed to accompany my doomed first one. They got 20 metres into their mission, slammed on the breaks, hooked a savage right turn and drove to the rear edge of the map, almost as if they wanted to drive back and party with the other rear echelon mutha fookers! Maybe they had a premonition of what was about to befall their conrades? Maybe they don't even deserve a screenie their performance was so crap! Maybe I'm slightly miffed that BD is gonna woop my proverbial in this game!

Orders for next turn: From the left: Halftrack and FO team survivor - head full speed back down the hill. Sorry mortar team survivor, I can't wait for you to recover your morale. Mortar team half way down hill - fire for the whole turn into centre of farm courtyard. (orange line and cross) Mortar team by building - fire for the whole turn to just behind southern R35. (red line and cross) Company HQ in building - set up a linear fire mission from BDs AT gun position to the southern R35. 8 minutes and counting down..... Two rifle team halftracks to the south of the river - head up the the edge of the forest as fast as you can. MMG halftrack to the south of the river - head forward then dogleg to the left and take cover in the woods at the southern end of the bridge. Platoon HQ halftrack to the south of the river - hold position.

Best news of all is that my 2nd Platoon reinforcements arrived! They look awfully exposed, cooped up in those tin cans, but at least they'll be able to get to their destination quickly, and the halftracks will offer slightly better protection than running around in the open, even if I'd be able to spread them out if they were on foot! I've got a two rifle squads, one each in a halftrack. I've also got two MMG teams and a HQ support team in another halftrack and lastly 2nd Platoon HQ in the last halftrack.

My men bunched up around the buildings did a pretty good job of sorting themselves out. I've now got both scout team up by the bridge, and the remainder of their squads back in the two buildings. My HQ support team are loaded onto the rear halftrack and both my MMGs are deployed and ready to fire.

Turn 5 More casualties on the left flank. It was definitely a bad idea to come up here with just a handful of men. They are falling like flies to BDs men who are defending the woods! Three members of my mortar team got taken out with no reply. I'll have to cut my losses and evacuate next turn. Not impressed! Otherwise it was a pretty quiet turn. The second mortar landed behind BDs left rear R35 (yellow star), a lot closer than last time, but no visual damage done to it. I also fired a mortar from my team by the building, over towards the R35 on the right. It landed well short (red star), at the beginning of the trees, and no sign of a second round leaving by the end of the turn.

I took my time with this turn. It was imperative that I spread my men out as much as possible. It was also imperative that I got into some good offensive positions and start to give BD something to think about. His turns have been coming back far too quickly for my liking! From the left: The remaining member of my FO team is to remount the halftrack and attempt to man the MG. My mortar squad is to finish deploying then fire briefly at the last known position of BDs AT gun. My rear mortar will pack up, sprint north and unpack at the bunch of tree (yellow arrow). Next turn I will hopefully get them to fire briefly at the centre of the farm (yellow line and star). Maybe even a prolonged fire mission? My left scout team (light green arrow) will sprint to the left of the bridge and hide. My right scout team will finish searching the house then sprint across to the right of the bridge and hide. My mortar team by the building can see through the deciduous forest to a location just behind the last known position of the R35 on that side (red line and star). He will fire briefly at this position and hope for another lucky shot! I have my rear halftrack providing overwatch on the south forest (pink lines are firing arc). I also have the MMG team by the house doing likewise (white lines are firing arc) I have the MMG team in the courtyard setting up to provide a firing arc over the northern forest (black lines are firing arc) HQ support team will finish searching their house then run to mount the reat halftrack and hopefully man the rear MG and provide more covering fore on the north forest. One squad of riflemen will neter the northern house (house 1), one squad of riflemen will enter the southern house (house 2) Company HQ will enter house 2. Platoon HQ will stand to the south of house 1. With a bit of luck I should see 2nd Platoon making their appearance on the other side of the river in the next turn or two......

Not much of note happened for the remainder of the turn. My mortar team did let loose another round at the R35, hopefully it will land closer still and may even knock out the driver, but I'm not holding out any major hopes when it finishes it's flight next turn. Here's the state of play at the end of the turn: I've lost contact with all contacts other than the rear left R35 that I hot with my mortar round. In a way that's a good thing, as I can regroup and reorganise this turn. On the other hand BD will be able to move around unseen, and may even be lining up some death from above for me in the clearing by the two houses. Here's how bunched up I am! My Company HQ, Platoon HQ, a mortar team and a MMG team (white circle) are all right on top of each other at the white star. Both my rifle squads (less two 2 man scout teams)(yellow circle) are bunched up tight at the yellow star. You should be able to see one scout team positioned along the wall by the track that leads up to the northern forest. They are hiding behind the wall, saefly out of view of the R35. BD will know that they are there, but will he take a shot at them? My other scout team are in the building by the yellow star. They are working theor way through it, to make sure BD hasn't left any nasty suprises in there for me. My HQ support team are in the other building (the one by the white star). They are likewise checking over the building to make sure it is safe. Once I have cleared both buildings I will be much happier and can prepare to take the first bridge. My three halftracks and other MMG team are in or close by the clearing by the two houses.

Turn 4 It was another one of those turns, with my morale slipping after another key casualty to it rising again after inflicting a key one on BD too! What a game! You value certain men so much that their loss if really felt, and you know that your opponent suffers from the same roller coaster ride too! The turn started with my left flank half track suffering a casualty, the gunner falling victim to a stary shot. I couldn't even place where exactly it came from, but the driver wasted no more time in reversing into the edge of the woods. Now my halftrack is useless, unless I can get the radio operator from the FO team to get in and man the gun...... BD was also having a pop at my HQ teams as they ran across the open from their position in the trees to the cover of the nearby building. His backmost R35 (yellow circle) was either targetting them or he was having a shot at my MMG team as they were packing up and moving forward. Either way I think the tank commander was caught in two minds and ended up firing inbetween them (yellow star). He only got a chance to fire off one round too, before my men got to the saefty of cover. I then decided it was time my mortar team had a pop back at him. The round lobbed lazily through the sky, taking an age to fulfill it's arc and land way to the rear of the R35 (red star). I thought that it was a wasted shot, but on replaying the turn with a close up view of the R35 I noticed the telltale little red cross rising from the tank. Another replay showed that the tank commander had been sitting out of the hatch, no doubt trying to spot another target, when he must have caught a piece of shrapnel in the back of his head for all his troubles! I'd be lying to you if I said a little smile didn't cross my face, infact it was much more of a woop-woop! I then decided it was high time that I did a bit of research about these little R35s. I'd already done some on the net last night, with no great amount of info reaped, but I looked in the rulebook after my little victory and was well chuffed to discover the following: The last paragraph was particularly enlightening! Looks like BD has a 'useless' R35 on his hands, and I'll be paying close attention to any other men I see popping out of these from now on!

I should have taken are closer screenie for the orders image, but I'll explain as best I can. From the rear: Time for my rear MMG team to pack up and head towards the houses (white arrow). He was exposed to the nearest midget tank on the left and was sure to be exposed to any men BD moves down the slope in the southern forest. Last turn I moved my Compnay HQ up to join the Platoon HQ, but their current position is in view of the furthest left midget tank. They've both been ordered to the 'safety' of the houses, but once there I've got to split them up ASAP! My mortar team in the current location of the HQs will fire briefly on the furthest left midget tank. This will be a direct fire mission and will also be a brief one only, it will be interesting to see how many rounds they fire off, and how accurate they are. My men behind the house, in view of the closest left midget tank, have been ordered to pack up and move to the cover of the end of the house. My scout team have been ordered to leg it to the stone wall by the track and hide behind it (green line) My other scout team have been ordered to search the frontmost building (yellow line) My HQ support team have been ordered to search the other building (red line) All other infantry have been ordered to take up hidden positions in and around the buildings. My rear halftack (currently in view of the nearest left midget tank) has been ordered to advance until out of sight of it. Now I'm very conscious of the fact that I have a lot of men bunched up in and around the houses there. I'm feeling vulnerable to BDs midget tanks (R35s from now on!) and have no counter for them at the moment, excpet the bazookas in the halftracks, but they are well out of bazooka range at the moment. If BD calls an artillery strike on my position I could be toast. If I take up shelter in the houses I could be sitting ducks for BDs R35s. I'm sure even their little guns could hurt my if I'm huddled inside. I'm going to need to come up with a plan and quick!

Three more 81mm rounds fell around the bridge and then I recieved confirmation that the mission had finished. Otherwise you can see who is where at the end of the turn. I've now got two infantry contacts in the southern woods and the one infantry contact in the northern one. You can see the current location of all three midget tanks and the aging and fading contacts in the farm.

While all this was going on I had some close contact action by my left flank half track. Out of nowhere one of my FO team got hit and killed. Not just any member, the bloody forward observer himself! Big loss! I think I have been far too hasty in pushing a minimal force up onto the ridge, in fact I don't think I should have come up here at all. Either that or I should have sent most of my men up to this ridge and cleared it out! My halftrack turned towards the source of the incoming fire and soon spotted an infrantryman, he layed down a healthy burst or three of 50 cal fire, before the enemy disappeared into the undergrowth. But as he was firing he was taking return fire from the woods and from across the other side of the valley! So far it's only been small arms fire from both woods, but if that midget tank draws a line of sight I might be in big trouble!

Turn 3 Hmmmm, looks like I'm going to have to start paying close attention to these midget tanks, they're coming out of the woods like ants! :eek: Right at the start of turn 3 one pops up at the top of the track leading into the northern woods. He can see my squad and mortar team huddled behind the house, as well as my scout team, and a handful of units further back, down the road. He has a pop with his main gun, but hits a tree, but this still causes an injury to one of my scout team! Not long afterwards another one pops up by the northern wood, this time further back and behind the orchard. It looks like BD is keeping them close to the tracks. I wonder where the next one will appear from!!!

Here's the state of play at the end of the turn. My orders for next turn: My FO team and mortar team were a bit shaken by the ride up and didn't make it to their locations. Try again this turn to reach the pink star. Platoon HQ and mortar team hold position and deploy (yellow circle) Squad and mortar team hold position and deploy (orange circle) Scout team hold position (red circle) Front two halftracks hunt forward a touch (light green and light blue arrows) Scout team take up position between front two halftracks (medium blue arrow) MMG team run to corner of house and deploy (green arrow) HQ support team run to middle of the road (very light purple arrow) Squad run to corner of house and enter (purple arrow) Rear halftrack provide overwatch over southern forest (white lines are firing arc)

Turn 2 Things settled down somewhat this turn, as I and my men got over their initial nerves. The final 10 rounds landed around the bridge again this turn. If BD has any men around this objective they are sure to have suffered some, especially if they are in the woods on my side of the bridge! If he decided not to defend the bridge then I have 'wasted' a few 81mm rounds, but I can live with that. My leftmost scouts decided not to advance, probably a bit nervous about the incoming rounds, but they have a good overview position anyway! Any my front two halftracks didn't go all the way on their moves either. Caution rules it seems! They did manage to spot some infantry running through the south woods though, but they soon were lost in the gloom....

Which leaves me with my orders for turn 2. From the left again: FO team to dismount and crawl to the nearest tree and overlook the valley. Mortar team to dismount and crawl to midway to the tree. Halftrack to watch over woods for any flanking manoeuver from BD. I'm not sure if he has placed any assets up in these woods. Left of the fence Scout team to hunt along the side of the buliding then hunt to the stone wall that runs alongside the track up to the northern forest and ridge. Remainder of squad to run to the nearest building and take up scout teams current position. Mortar team to run to the same position by nearby house. Platoon HQ and mortar team to run to the position to be vacated by the platoon in front of them Other side of the fence Halftrack to hunt forward to edge of the building. MMG to pack up and move forward to the halftracks current position. Rear halftrack to hunt forward to front halftracks current position. Other side of the road Halftrack to hunt forward to the row of trees Scout team to hunt forward to the row of trees HQ support team to crawl forward to scout teams current position. Remainder of squad to crawl forward along the riverbank. MMG team to reamin in position. At the back (out of image) Company HQ to continue fire mission.

My halftrack mission did reap some immediate rewards though, spotting a number of BDs units defending the farm, and a sorry excuse for a tank emerging from the woods on the southern side of the valley! I mean, WTF do you call that!!! I almost coughed my breakfast up when I saw it putter out fo the shadows! Thanks Battlefront for bringing a smaile to my face first thing in the morning! I wonder what BD is thinking about his hardware - it certainly isn't the Tiger he got to play with last game! I should and will show it respect though, especially as I have nothing to deal with it (except the bazookas in my halftracks) until I get some reinforcements later on. I can't imagine it will be too much trouble for the promised tanks I will receive midway though the mission. I'll also remain mindful that STuGs were mentioned in the briefing too..... Just down the hill, close to the farm, my halftrack spotted some sort of anti-tank gun positioned amongst some bunkers. It didn't manage to get a shot off at me, but it's good to know where it is and which way it is pointing - directly at where my flanking halftrack ended the turn! I also spotted a couple more bunker clusters around the farm, with what looked like regular infantry in them. Now we have moved up to elite level I get no more info on them other than the fact that they are 'infantry'. This is a huge improvement over the previous games we played - we'll have to examine spotted contacts in more detail to discover what they are exactly. Also, if and when they drop out of contact you lose any info you have acquired and have to start over again when they next pop up. It's going to make things a lot tougher to play - no more prioritising high value targets over lesser ones. I'll try to examine this aspect in more detail as we go on.

That's not to say that I didn't receive some casualties this turn. My flanking halftrack made it all the way to the top of the hill, then encountered an extra steep bit of ground right at the crest and slowed down some to get over it. Just as they were about to reached safety I started to take some small arms fire, some of which penetrated the rear side protection. Unfortunately I lost two men, one regular soldier from the mortar team and one regular soldier from the FO team. The halftrack then made it over the crest and to relative safety without any more trouble.

Turn 1 Here's where I got to by the end of the first turn. All my objectives were fulfilled and overall I'm pretty happy with how things went. After reading the mission briefing, which mentioned that contact had already been made prior to the start of the mission, I was expecting some incoming hurt into and around my setup zone. None materialised, so I can breath a sigh of relief there! My 81mm fire mission commenced midway through the first turn, seven rounds landing on and around the first bridge. If BD has any men stationed to defend the bridge I am hopeful that I caused some casualties, or at the very least suppressed them some. More rounds are expected to land during the next turn too!

Opening setup and orders OK, it all looks a bit cramped and confusing, but here is how I set up for the first turn. From left to right: To the left of the fence Halftrack with FO team is also loaded with a mortar team and ordered up the edge of the map to the top of the hill ASAP. I hope to get a good view down on the valley with both my FO team and a direct line of sight with a mortar team. Platoon HQ and another mortar team crawl (red) to nearby trees for cover then hide. 3/4 of a rifle squad run (yellow) to nearby trees then hide. 2 man scout team from previous rifle squad hunt (purple) to nearest house. Mortar team hide in position To the right of the fence Halftrack (unloaded) hunts (purple) forward. MMG team deploys and waits in position. Other side of the road Halftrack (unloaded) hunts (purple) forward 2 man scout team hunts (purple) forward. HQ support team crawls (red) forward. MMG team deploys and waits in position 3/4 of rifle team crawls (red) forward along the river bank. At the back Halftrack (unloaded) holds position and provides supporting fire. Company HQ calls in a 81mm fire mission on nearest bridge (white circle). ETA mission start - 1 minute!

Starting troops A Company HQ Company HQ - Binoculars and Radio - 3 men - Regular training - above average commander M2 Halftrack - Radio, bazooka and 4 rounds, 2 mounted MGs - 2 men - Regular training - above average commander Forward Observer Section FO Team - Binoculars and Radio - 3 men - Regular training - well below average commander! M2 Halftrack - Radio, bazooka and 4 rounds, 2 mounted MGs - 2 men - Regular training - above average commander Light Mortar Team 1 Light Mortar Team - Binoculars and 60mm mortar - 5 men - Regular training - above average commander M3 Halftrack - Radio, bazooka and 4 rounds, 2 mounted MGs - 2 men - Regular training - above average commander Light Mortar Team 2 Light Mortar Team - Binoculars and 60mm mortar - 5 men - Regular training - above average commander M3 Halftrack - Radio, bazooka and 4 rounds, 1 mounted MG - 2 men - Regular training - above average commander 1st Platoon Platoon HQ - Binoculars - 3 men - Regular training - above average commander HQ Support - 4 men - Regular training - above average commander 1st Rifle Squad - Binos - 9 men - Regular training - above average commander 2nd Rifle Squad - Binos - 9 men - Regular training - above average commander 3rd Squad A MMG Team - Binos - 3 men - Regular training - above average commander 3rd Squad B MMG Team - Binos - 3 men - Regular training - above average commander Light Mortar Squad - Binos and 60mm mortar - 5 men - Regular training - above average commander

Looking back from the other end of the map. There is a bit more cover for BD on the left, with a good sprinkling of trees. There is also a track leading up to the north barn, which should aid him in getting anything motorised up there in an emergency. Looking from the perspective of the north barn. The ridge itself commands quite an impressive view over the entire valley. The barn and immediate area are actually in a sunken recess behind the ridge and offer no views over the main part of the map. The coniferous forest is pretty dense and I'm not sure how much penetration indirect fire would achieve. There is a track that leads from my end of the valley, up into the forest, past the north barn and back down the hill to BDs end of the map. If I can secure the north barn and forest it would offer and awesome way to outflank any of BDs troops in the valley. The opposite is of course also true..... And looking from the south barn. Much the same topographical features as the north side. Good views down onto the valley from the ridge, but the barn itself and nearby area is sunken behind the ridge. The deciduous forest is slightly more open than the evergreen forest on the other side of the map, but it will still be hard going clearing it of any Axis defenders. There is a track up to the south barn from the farm in the valley, but once past the barn it goes off the edge of the map and offers no way back down into the valley, other than back the way you came.

The Map Looking down from above. It's pretty open in the valley. There is a bit of cover around the VLs, but inbetween and on either side it is clear as the bright blue sky. It's going to be tricky getting around without getting shot at! Looking left from the starting location. Quite a climb up the the woods on the left. I've a few trees to use as immediate cover, but after that it's out in the open. If I can get to that building in front of me without losing too mnay men I might be able to use it as a base of fire to take the first bridge. And looking right from kickoff. No way across unless I take the bridge. 2nd Platoon is supposed to arrive on the other side of the river, but they'll be exposed as soon as they do! An overview from the start position shows that I could leapfrog the trees up the immediate left to the 'safety' of the wooden heights. I think any advance up the centre is going to be a case of brute force and ignorance, unless I can gain a vantage point to rain down some pain from above. It sure is going to be up close and personal to take these VLs though!