Gustav Kiwi Soldiers scenario: i need help

[JonS]

I have, once or twice

[LukeFF]

I have, once or twice

Well, I hope so!

[ZPB II]

Right at the start, take the HQ team out of the 2-story building with LOS to the hill and put 2 sections on the top and bottom floor. Then setup the other teams so they have cover and a LOF to the hill. Then just have a plain shootout with the MG and sniper team, should be easy. After they're dead, throw some smoke over the wall so you can move your teams to the other side of the low wall so they can shoot the Germans at the other objective.

Done.

[Jaeger Jonzo]

took me 2 attempts to win. Lost 9 men, captured both objectives. Only 2 enemy paras captured alive at end, rest KIA. It does take a combination of all your available weapons and a bit of patience.

[kohlenklau]

Company Sgt Major brought up ammo with the noon day meal....

He also brought all these bloody picks and shovels.

We'll tunnel down through this farm and up into the rail station.

Take Jerry totally by surprise!

Alright, put your backs into it lads....

[LukeFF]

Right at the start, take the HQ team out of the 2-story building with LOS to the hill and put 2 sections on the top and bottom floor. Then setup the other teams so they have cover and a LOF to the hill. Then just have a plain shootout with the MG and sniper team, should be easy. After they're dead, throw some smoke over the wall so you can move your teams to the other side of the low wall so they can shoot the Germans at the other objective.

Well, I tried this strategy, and though it worked for me at first, my attack ended up stalling out. My two squads in the building shot it out with the LMG team. For some time I thought I had taken this MG out, but it turns out they relocated to the other side of the building, where they were waiting for my section that I sent up the right-hand side of the map.

Taking out the sniper team wasn't hard, as I used a section to suppress them and then the light mortar to take the team out. So far, so good.

I then moved two sections across the road to the far side of the wall, where I attempted to shoot it out again, this time with the Germans at the railway station. That didn't work too well, as the two sections I had there were slowly but surely picked to pieces. It was at this point I called cease-fire and noticed there was still plenty of firepower available to the Germans.

Ack, this is a tough one.

[ZPB II]

Ack, this is a tough one.

I had a similar fate on my first try, I thought the MG was dealt with but it opened up on the backs of my men lined up on the wall and took out 7 with a single burst.

On the next attempt I made sure to keep an eye out for the red crosses. Only when I was positive that the MG was taken out did I make a move.

I forgot to mention sending a few sections sneaking on the other side of the train station through the opening in the wall. When I was confident that the train station was being suppressed enough (mortar barrage, 3 squads area firing it) I had the teams that had crawled next to the building toss some smoke inside and charge it guns blazing, mowing down the suppressed defenders.

But, the accessible section of wall is enough to provide cover for some 3 sections, that, aided by smoke, should be enough to win the firefight with the train station posse.

[LukeFF]

I forgot to mention sending a few sections sneaking on the other side of the train station through the opening in the wall. When I was confident that the train station was being suppressed enough (mortar barrage, 3 squads area firing it) I had the teams that had crawled next to the building toss some smoke inside and charge it guns blazing, mowing down the suppressed defenders.

Yeah, I had a feeling that would be a good strategy...after I had my forces pummeled. I'll give it a try.

[Erwin]

The other question that we need to know re these AAR's is who is playing this RT and who WEGO?

[A Canadian Cat]

Now that I have tried it once - a draw but it felt more like a loss :-) I'll chime in now - WEGO. It is a tough one because the guys in the rail station are hard to get at without exposing your self but if you head up the hill they will get you in the back.

I decided that the rail station had to go first but I needed to keep the farm guys out of it. So I dropped the 81mm mortar rounds on the farm and put up a smoke screen in front of it. Then with the rounds falling and the smoke screen up: I tried to have the third section crawl out over the tracks so they could put some covering fire on the rail station. And once the cover fire was established the plan was to run two sections and the HQ across the open ground to my end of the rail station.

The rail yard covering force was cut down without firing a shot - I should have stopped right there:-). The fire came from the middle structure so I figured the one at the end was unoccupied. So I let one section and the HQ race across. Just brutal. The made the crossing of the open ground OK but there was a nasty firefight at the door. In the end the Germans lost quite a few guys but my platoon was pretty much messed up. One section gone another severely depleted and the remaining one was broken even though they only suffered a couple of casualties - I guess they could not take witnessing their comrades go down.

I managed to press the attack and took the rail station with the HQ, the remnants of a section and mortar HQ with some suppression fire from the broken section in the rail yard. But there was no way they were going any further.

Time to try again. I was thinking to ignore the farm and take the rail station first but after the smoke screen lifted the fire coming from the farm into the rail station was pretty nasty. Not sure where to go next but I will think of something.

[MikeyD]

WEGO? Oh lordy, it never dawned on me to attempt this in WEGO. Having to sit there for sixty loooong seconds at a time while bad things were happening to my troops!

[Russkly]

Phew!

I'm sooo glad it's not just me.

I too would really love to see a video of someone winning this (as the Kiwis, of course!).

R

[fabiovir]

hello everyone, this is my performance.....after 8-9 time....

After hammered the rail station with mortar, trought dust and smoke all men of 14th platoon rushed into the station and meet a group of stunned jerry paràs...then with a crossfire and two lucky piat round the mg in the hill was silenced and mounted an assault with HQ platoon section under heavy cover fire....and jerry surrendered.

[c3k]

I've tried this now about 3 times. WeGo. Oh, as the Kiwi's. This is BRUTAL. In a good way. There HAS to be a way of winning, I just haven't sussed it out yet.

In my first play-through, I did the best. Then I started trying to get fancy. That was a mistake. I think I'll call back to HQ and get some Churchills sent up...

Ken

[Jaeger Jonzo]

I played it real time for my win.

Split the squads and put 2 Bren teams in the building along with the mortar team to duke it out with the enemy on the hill.

Sneaked an Fo and Bren team outside to put fire on the station from some shell holes near the tracks. Whilst the station defenders were suppressed I ran two tommy gun squads upto it and sneaked them into the first unit where they cut down several defenders (don't try this with rifleman!) they kept the remaining Jerries bottled up in the last building whilst I moved up some flanking riflemen and the Piat team to blast that last building. Job done at the station!

Meanwhile the farm defenders had taken casualties or were suppressed enough to then flank them on both sides of the hill and close for the kill.

[BDW]

Jeager & fabiovir, I am very impressed! Nice work. Since posting this thread, I've tried a few more times. To no avail. So, i'm officially waving the white flag on this little hellish scenario! I can sleep easy now knowing at least a few of you guys kicked jerry's butt on this one.

[fabiovir]

Jeager & fabiovir, I am very impressed! Nice work. Since posting this thread, I've tried a few more times. To no avail. So, i'm officially waving the white flag on this little hellish scenario! I can sleep easy now knowing at least a few of you guys kicked jerry's butt on this one.

Thanks but i'have meet this obj after 8-9 times and every time i'have lost almost whole platoon, man after man craying under jerries deadly fires....very sad to see.

[ss11955]

After at least a dozen tries--- I lucked out since a unit with a PIAT that was on second floor at start ko'd LMG unit in house up the hill ---then Mortared Sniper up the hill---then sent everybody to "shack" area by RR station ---then ASSAULTED center building with entire force at once and KO'd enemy.

[usgubgub]

Put simply, this is a sadist scenario.

The Kiwi troops don't have the quality, the leaders or the support to have an even chance to carry the mission out.

After many attempts, I got a draw where I took the station but not the farm. The FJs in the station were all wiped out but one, in the farm they had no casualties. I lost two thirds of my platoon.

To win, you need luck. Because of the positioning of the FJs in the station's middle building, and the lack of cover from which you can observe them and fire on them, taking the station is always going to cost dear.

I got good at using the 2" smoke and time a move by groups with SMGs so they could fire on the middle building from close by while covered by a bren team in the shellholes just ou from Perano farm. The trick is to assign the move order with a fire order from the arrival point just seconds before the smoke covers the window.

Your infantry gets into position under cover of the smoke and begins firing their Tommy guns into the window before the FJs can spot them. The smoke clears away litterally seconds after they begin to fire, but sometimes that is enough to give them the edge.

This move got good results three times out of eight, depending on whether the FJs would manage to stay unsuppressed despite the incoming fire, in which case your assault teams were toast in very short order. Without Thompsons and with the Brens busy keeping the FJs in the farm suppressed there is no point in going on.

More mortar ammo is needed, also better leaders/troops as very often the minute someone gets hit the Kiwis in this scenario tend to remember urgent appointments elsewhere and bolt.

The answer to winning this scenario is in the editor. I made a couple of mods and got a total victory (just to be able to complete the mission I put a Vickers and a sniper in the building at the back and gave the 81mm mortar teams a full complement of ammo). Now, this is perhaps too big an adjustment.

One could fiddle with the victory conditions to penalize the Kiwis/favor the FJs for suffering/inflicting casualties. The Vickers is probably surplus with plenty of 81mm ammo.

Having tried to attack the farm first a few times I can confirm my preference for the station first approach. There aren't enough mortar bombs to suppress effectively the FJs in the station long enough to approach the farm and bring fire to bear on it. I used the 81mm smoke allocation (2 rounds!!!) to cover two sections approaching up along the map edge. I get them into position along the wall next to the map edge, still in full view of the FJs in the station, so they have to crawl and hide for the last 20m. I then put a stonk down on the farm which doesn't kill anybody and doesn't suppress anybody (again, not enough rounds). I can't move close while the farm is being bombarded. When I move, the FJ HQ with two Schmeissers mows down a few of the attackers, the rest promptly bolt and end up being shredded by the FJs in the station who now have a perfect view as the smoke has long faded.

[JonS]

You should have given the Kiwis a Sherman too

[ZPB II]

Right, the best I could do is a Total Victory with 5 casualties vs. 12 Axis casualties. All this in under 5 minutes. Block the farm with smoke from the light mortar, nuke the station with 81mm mortar. While mortars were falling I rushed 2 sections onto the rail embankment from where they kept area firing the station while a HQ squad rushed in. All the defenders were killed as they were still cowering. Then it was an easy firefight with the couple of Krauts up on the farm.

[ASL Veteran]

Right, the best I could do is a Total Victory with 5 casualties vs. 12 Axis casualties. All this in under 5 minutes. Block the farm with smoke from the light mortar, nuke the station with 81mm mortar. While mortars were falling I rushed 2 sections onto the rail embankment from where they kept area firing the station while a HQ squad rushed in. All the defenders were killed as they were still cowering. Then it was an easy firefight with the couple of Krauts up on the farm.

I think you had an inherent advantage over most players because you are from Finland. You don't happen to keep a pile of toothpicks and pine cones nearby whenever you are playing Combat Mission do you?

[Buzz]

Good On You JonS.

3 RT late PM attempts to "relax" as I am too busy and getting my troops slaughtered makes my REM so ... restorative

[usgubgub]

Well, I tried Zebulon Pleasure Beast II's method five times. These are the results:

One of the sections that is supposed to take the station under fire gets shredded every time by stray 81mm rounds.

The FJs are always nice and perky when my HQ with the Tommy gun comes knocking on the door, and while my guys don't get a shot off, they are sent to meet their maker in short order.

You can only use the light barrage as anything more intense just doesn't allow the limited smoke of the 2" section to deploy. Meanwhile, you still lose guys to the unsuppressed sniper and LMG in the farm.

My results using this method were always worse than my previous efforts. Does this indicate that winning this scenario decisively is largely a question of luck?

[ZPB II]

ASL Veteran, truly there are inherent advantages with being a Finn, such as being better than everyone else. But I try not to flaunt it. My toothpicks and pinecones are in a box on the the east side of my house, waiting, just in case.

usgubgub, the timing has to be precise. Wait until the barrage is just about to lift, then order them to move. When done correctly your guy with the Tommy gun will be busting the door mere seconds after the last mortar round has landed.

I find that I have plentiful firepower (two sections and HQ team suppressing the station and the rest shooting at the farm) to make sure that the few guys over at farm won't be lifting their heads. The sniper team usually dies within the first 10 seconds of the battle.

If the 2 inch mortar smoke isn't enough, pop smoke with your sections.

I have found this method to be the most reliable for me, I have now won this scenario more often than lost. Sample size being what it is, this still doesn't negate the aspect of luck.

Shooting it out with the farm first and then redeploying to the stone wall just outside the starting zone towards the farm is far less reliable, if even one guy survived at farm he will take out most of your men from behind.