Carentan Operational Battles Scenario Question

[wvfoos]

I'm new to all this grognard/hexer stuff. I've tinkered around with some quick battles (won several convincingly) and stuff, and read the manual religiously (CMBO, im ordering CMBB soon).

It's taken me several tries to get a decent grip on the carentan battles (i play as the allies). I think there are nine battles in that scenario. Anyway, i've got the first battle pretty well done, but i was just wondering, how far should have i advanced at the end of those first 20 turns??

On the right column, I'm usually well in control of the first town there at the crossroads, where you have to take out that antitank gun. But i'm not really much farther than the crossroads, at least with any decent sized force, maybe a platoon or a split either at or beyond the crossroads. I blow up several of the buildings before making my assualt on the townm, and the rest of my force (including the tanks) is usually solidly in the town and buildings. Should i be much farther than that?

On the left column, i seem to move much slower. I'm usually in control of the crossroad with the barricade, and usually the field just beyond the barricade. My tanks are usually are just beyond the crossroads, and are getting ready to support my troops on their run across that open field. It seems like getting my guys through that bocage takes HOURS. Especially those units that can't move FAST, like mg and mortar teams. Should i be much farther than that crossroads. One game, i did manage to move my tanks safely along that road to the point i could take out the antitank gun that was pointing to the column on my right. But i hauled ass to get that. Took several heavy casualties. But i did get my tanks to shoot into the side of that gun, and knock it out.

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"It looks like you guys're gonna be surrounded."

"We are paratroopers, Lt. We are supposed to be surrounded." -- Captain Dick Winters, Band of Brothers.

[Dandelion]

Hi there,

Carentan is a 30% operation. Meaning you are expected to advance 30% of the map. And yup, 9 battles. It's a long one.

Smiled some in recognition when I read your posting. Carentan was one of my ab-fabs too and I struggled a lot with it. As German, though. I really learned to hate the NoMansLand function. Having beaten severe assaults off by tooth and nail for 20 long minutes, it was an outrage to be forced to retreat a drastic 400 meters for no reason at all.

Of course, the terrain became ever more beneficial for defense. But still...

Don't go through the bocage. If the enemy is there, bypass him. He will be forced to abandon his position and retreat (lest he be cut off), and you can block his withdrawal by controlling the roads (he will use the most covered route South, you can be sure). If you go through the bocage, not only will your advance be slowed to a crawl, but you'll be exposed to as many potential ambush situations as there are hedgerows. Bocage is lousy cover and between them just open field.

The left road is much longer than the right, it being angled in a 45 degree while the right one goes straight South. So you won't get as far along it as on the right if you follow it. But you need not follow it any longer than tops to the roadblock. After that, you can make a left turn (to the East) and head for that small village, which I recall has a church. From there, you are out of bocage-country and have good roads leading straight South.

Of course, further South another problem will appear, but I'll leave that to your future battles.

The enemy has plenty of antitank weaponry. Carried such. Any advance along roads without infantry clearing the roadsides first is a definite caveat. As I recall it, I managed to eliminate the bulk of US armour (handled recklessly by the AI) in the first battle, and I don't recall them ever appearing in convincing numbers after that (one or two only, easily stalked and finished off). So I think your supply is limited.

All the best

Dandelion

[wvfoos]

I've only played the second battle seriously like 2 or so times. One time, my force was so smashed up from my horrendous first battle, that i quickly gave up in the second.

But last night, i was able to make it through the first battle with a minimum of casualties, and all my armor intact, even that little scout car that doesn't seem to be good for much. He has like zero visibility if buttoned, it seems like.

Anyway, i massed 3 tanks and the scout car on the crossroads of the right column to start the second battle, and as soon as the scenario started, sent 2 of the tanks side by side on "fast" to the end of the map. Only encountered the wooden bunker, and it was taken out easily. Got clear to the end of the map. Then the germans came out on the sides of the roads in between those two forward tanks, and the other tank and the scout car, just outside my setup area. I then backtracked with my two forward tanks, and caught them in the road from behind, in a blistering crossfire. Butchered them with no problem. The 3rd tank was immobilized in the road from arty, but could still fire its gun and mg. And the scout car was destroyed by arty, but i wiped out like 4-5 platoons/teams with just the two forward tanks and the gun and 50 from the immobile tank.

I've never thought about turning left at the left crossroads. I thought you were supposed to just cross that one bridge on the right. I'll try your suggestion of making a left at the roadblock. Thanks. I also failed to recognize until today, i could combine the two columns in the setup. I did that tonight, on the right column, and totally ran through that crossroad. Set three tanks and mortars up to blow up buildings, the forth to take out the mg on the main road, and then charge into the town, with mg's covering to cut down the germans running from the exploding buildings. Clearly a rout.

But i think i'll try again and go left at the barricaded xroads.

[Falcon988]

I'm playing through that right now (going through the whole game in chronological order). It's quite bloody but the Allies are gaining a lot of ground. On day 1 we lost every tank we had thanks to German AT guns that blasted them on the roads but the Infantry took St. Come Du Mont but with heavy casualties since the Germans bombarded them on the road. But the Americans in turn bombarded the village and destroyed several buildings that machine guns were positioned in, which really helped in Du Mont's capture. On the other side of the field the Infantry got pinned down in an open field and ended up staying there the whole day fighting for their lives.

Day 2 what infantry I had in Du Mont stayed there for most of the day. Reinforcements showed up to help the boys on the left flank and they made a VERY cautious and VERY slow advance up the map, covering each other and whatnot. I made it the objective to capture the cottage just north of Come-Du-Mont. We threw a few arty rounds around that cottage just to shake up the German defenders (if there were any) and continued with my leftern advance. After they passed the bocage my Infantry came under withering fire from Germans on the other side of the field and the 1 remaining German AT gun (we knocked one out the day before) pounded the crap out of them. Took quite a few casualties. The Germans started to bombard them and so I was forced to move the Infantry up even more and so they were now under attack by Germans defending the cottage as well. My Two Shermans were knocked out by the AT gun (that's how I found out it was there and so I figured we were pretty screwed. That is until the battle shifted in our favor when our own 105mm's started raining down on the Germans and knocked out that AT gun. Plus my platoon & their Sherman from St. Come-Du-Mont joined in the fighting and we drove them off.

It's now Battle 4, Day 2 (we had one nightfall and that's included as 1 Battle I suppose). Reinforcements have arrived and we occupy a position JUST south of the cottage. I wouldn't be surprised if the Germans had cleared out by now. In any case there's still a lot of terrain to get through so I'll be going back to my game now