ParaBellum Posted January 4, 2003 Share Posted January 4, 2003 Ok, here it is: the long expected AAR of the titanic struggle of Master Goodale and me. Abbott was so kind to create this battle for us, again thank you, we both enjoyed it very much! MG and me will post this AAR in 5-turn pieces, a new piece every day for the next week. Comments are welcome! Here we go: Abbot created a beautiful map with a village in a center, placed between rolling hills. It is a meeting engagement in August 1941, clear weather, noon. I will command the heroic troops of the Fatherland while MG will take command of the Red Army. Our mission is to take the village. These are my available forces: 1 x Company of Rifle '41 infantry ---3 x 50mm mortars ---2 x HMG 34s 2 x Panzerjäger teams 3 x SPW 251/1 1 x SPW 251/10 with a 37mm gun 3 x Pz IV with short 75mm gun 3 x Pz II with 20mm gun Most of my force is veteran with some regulars. Expected enemy forces: Actually I really don't know...The only thing I can expect is some russian heavy armour. Why? Because Abbott is evil... I expect a soviet force consisting of an infantry company with support weapons and a mixture of light, medium and heavy tanks. My plan: The PzIVs and PzIIs are not meant to duel with T-34s and KVs. So my plan is to secure the village fast and use my infantry and especially my Panzerjäger teams to ambush his armour. My armour has only one objective: prevent the russian armour from killing my infantry! After studying the map I decided to split my force into 3 Kampfgruppen: Kampfgruppe Reinhard 3 x Pz IV 2 x Pz II 1 x Inf.Plt. 3 x 50mm mortars 1 HMG 34 The mission of KG Reinhard is to secure Hill 230 west of the village. There my light mortars and the HMG 34 will form a firebase to support Lt.Becker's infantry platoon when he attacks the village from the west. My armour will transport the mortars and the HMG34 to the hill and support Lt.Becker and (hopefully) deny MG's forces to flank me and attack me from the rear. If they meet superior armour they will pull back and ambush the russians from the flanks. If MG decides to roll the bulk of his armour into the village they will attack them from the flanks and from the rear. Kampfgruppe Kinkel 3 x SPW 251/1 1 x SPW 251/10 1 x PzII 1 x Inf.Plt. minus 1 squad 2 x Panzerjäger teams 1 x HMG 34 Kinkel's mission is to race with his SPWs into the village and secure the VL's. I need to get my infantry and especially the Panzerjäger teams into good ambush positions before his infantry arrives. Unt. Wittman in his PzII and a HMG34 will secure the right flank and have an eye on everything that comes across the hills east of the village. Kampfgruppe Reuter 1 x Inf.Plt. 1 x Inf. Squad from KG Kinkel 1 x CO HQ Reuter's men will advance along the gully between the village and the hill east of it. They will support Kinkel's force and will take positions on the right side of the village. --------------------------------------- Turn 1: My troops start to move, nothing spectacular. One of MG's tanks starts to fire at one of the buildings at the NW corner of the village, setting it on fire. Turn 2: KG Kinkel reaches the village, dismounts from their SPWs and advances on foot into the village. Unt. Wittman's PzII and the HMG34 take position south of the village. KG Reuter advances along the gully towards the village. The tanks of KG Reinhard (with mortars and a HMG34 mounted) have almost reached their destination on hill 230, the infantry is following. Turn 3: NOOO! A russian "Tankette?" appears NW of hill 230 and fires at one of my PzIIs knocking it out with one shot! Seconds later the enemy tank is identified as T-34. The other Panzers have reached the hilltop and the mortars and the HMG34 dismount and move into position. My 3 PzIVs engage the T-34 and Lt.Reinhard scores a hit, penetrating the front turret! Unfortunately the T-34 is not knocked out and reverses out of LOS. Damn! To the north of hill 230 more tank engines are heard. Looks like MG thinks this hill is important, too. I order the SPW 251/1s to withdraw from the village. They have delivered their infantry and I don't want to loose them to enemy armour. I might need them later... The SPW 251/10 stays in position behind the church, so that it can support Wittman's Pz II with his 37mm gun and watch my right flank. Reuter's men still advance along the gully, nothing special to report there. Turn 4: Lt. Reinhard's tanks are ordered back under a small smoke cover. Enemy infantry is seen advancing towards hill 230. My mortars and the HMG 34 are almost in position. Unfortunately Lt.Becker's infantry platoon is still lagging behind, for the next two minutes the mortars and the HMG34 will have to hold the position. In the village Kinkel's men have taken the 1st VL and are advancing towards the 2nd. Another SPW 251/1 is pulling back out of the village. Light soviet armour is spotted on the hill east of the village. Reuter's men in the gully are still, you guessed it, advancing towards the village... Turn 5: I got unexpected reinforcements: a platoon (3) of PzIII's with (short) 50mm guns. I send two of them west of hill 230 to strengthen my left flank and one to support Kinkel in the village. Unt.Wittman's PzII knocks out a light soviet tank on the hill east of the village. Good! This guy has potential... On hill 230 one of MG's infantry squads has entered a small patch of woods and immediatly gets shelled by my light mortars. The HMG team is in position and will make it difficult for his infantry to advance. Lt. Becker's infantry platoon has almost reached the hilltop MG will post his version of turns 1-5 soon... Hope you enjoy it! PS: It's Captain Wacky's LowRes gridded terrain...available at CMMODS . [ January 03, 2003, 07:54 PM: Message edited by: ParaBellum ] 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Abbott Posted January 4, 2003 Share Posted January 4, 2003 The scenario is available here if you would like to play it or follow along the map while reading the AAR. It is designed as two-player and has not been play tested verse the Artificial Intelligence. Download 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Panzer_Meyer Posted January 4, 2003 Share Posted January 4, 2003 This is a good AAR so far. It's been a long time since an AAR like has been done. Right now PB, you look like you have the upper hand with infantry in the village and your mortars and HMG in possition covering hill 230. Can't wait to see how this plays out. If maybe MG has some KVs or something. Would make it very interesting. Good luck both! p.s what do you win. What does the winner get? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gpig Posted January 4, 2003 Share Posted January 4, 2003 OMG! I love these well done AAR's. Thanks so much for putting this together! Ok. Now where is the rest of it? Gpig 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ParaBellum Posted January 4, 2003 Author Share Posted January 4, 2003 Thx for your kind words. And I can tell you that it will get pretty interesting...acts of courage! Bravery! Violence! I'm sure MasterGoodale will post his part soon. The winner gets the usual: glory and honour. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SuperSulo Posted January 4, 2003 Share Posted January 4, 2003 I must say, what a beautyful map! I'll grab it for sure... Very nice AAR too, looking forward for the next part. Is the second player as good as you writing AAR's? I guess I'll just have to wait and see... 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lumbergh Posted January 4, 2003 Share Posted January 4, 2003 Can't wait for a hot, molten report of 5 turns of TNT-spitting fury. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
_Axe_ Posted January 4, 2003 Share Posted January 4, 2003 Looks like there's going to be some good reading here for the next little while. One question though. Has Soddball given his permission to let MasterGoofdale out of his cage to play in this thread? Cheers, Jason 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stic.man Posted January 4, 2003 Share Posted January 4, 2003 totally sweet. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Salkin Posted January 4, 2003 Share Posted January 4, 2003 Great AAR. I want moore . //Salkin Swedish CM addict 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oban Posted January 4, 2003 Share Posted January 4, 2003 this is great stuff thanks PB, Cheers 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Panzer_Meyer Posted January 4, 2003 Share Posted January 4, 2003 MasterGoodale, you better post the next 5 turns, soon, c'mon...!!! Or I'll show my teeth and my growl. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soddball Posted January 4, 2003 Share Posted January 4, 2003 Originally posted by Axe2121: Looks like there's going to be some good reading here for the next little while. One question though. Has Soddball given his permission to let MasterGoofdale out of his cage to play in this thread? Cheers, JasonYes, but he's on a tight leash. One too many GRRRRs and he'll be in the Hole. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lindan Posted January 4, 2003 Share Posted January 4, 2003 Originally posted by ParaBellum: [snip] Unt.Wittman's PzII knocks out a light soviet tank on the hill east of the village. Good! This guy has potential...[snip]ROTFL! (Yes I know, he was on a StuG, not a Pz II blabla...) Cool AAR sofar. My money is on Para, he kicked my a$$ twice so far.(ok, this doesn'T mean much ) can't wait for the next. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasterGoodale Posted January 4, 2003 Share Posted January 4, 2003 Don't you get your TNT-filled panties in a molten wad maggots it's coming soon. :mad: 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CC_Brad Posted January 4, 2003 Share Posted January 4, 2003 **pulls his panties out of a big wad** ok, i'm ready now 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ParaBellum Posted January 4, 2003 Author Share Posted January 4, 2003 Two things: 1.) Thx guys, glad you like it so far. 2.) Since winter has just arrived in force and it's snowing I won't leave home for the rest of the evening. That means the second part (turns 6-10)of my AAR is (almost ready) and will be posted a while after Sister Goodale posted his 1st part. If he manages this today that is... 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasterGoodale Posted January 4, 2003 Share Posted January 4, 2003 My overall strategy is shown below. I have only myself to blame for not realizing this was a meeting engagement. I started off thinking it was an allied attack. No biggie though. I just might have setup differently. All of my troops were Veteran except for a crack tank hunter commander. I was handed a company of Rifle41 squads (3 platoons), 5 T-6 M31 armored cars, 3 50mm mortars, 5 Maxim MGs, 4 BA-10s, 2 Tank Hunter Teams with Molotov, and 3 T-34 M40 tanks. I decided to faint a main thrust through the center (don't laugh, remember I was think he was already in place), while I would send a strong infantry, mortar, and armored car force to the East (left side of screen shot) to possibly make it to his rear and surprise him down the road. The most powerful thrust would be the west as I knew this hill was crucial to victory as it overlooked the town clearly and could provide great suppression fire. Army Group East, West, and Center are shown on the map below and are made up as follows: AG East (left side of map): 3rd Platoon, A co., Rifle 41 (riding on T-6 cars) 5 T-6 M31 Cars 3 50mm Mortars AG Center: 2nd Platoon, A co. 2 BA-10s This is the faint force that wiull fire on the buildings and prevent a counter attack to my center. 2nd Platoon will the first to move forward and flank the town from the East. AG West (right side): 2 BA-10s 2 Tank Hunter Teams1st Platoon, A co. 3 T-34 M40 Tanks The main thrust that will take the hill and provide suppression while the East and Center troops attempt to move in The troops had just eaten a fresh meal of TNT and were hungry for blood. They are given the command to move out! Turn 1: Right away I spy filthy krauts slithering into town from the rear. Looks like some armored cars with infantry. They spot AG East and exchange some harmless MG fire. This hurts my plans more than my men, as I had hoped AGEast would go undiscovered for a while. Oh well, war is hell. AG Center begins firing on the Northern-Most building in an effort to flush out defenders. hehehe at this point I obviously realize there are none. AG West moves out heading South toward the hilltop. No sightings yet, but I just know in my heart of hearts that Parabellum wants this hill too, and I expect heavy resistance up there. Turn 2: Contact is pretty much lost between AG East and the halftracks and inf, but contact is made for the first time between AG West and some enemy armor on the hilltop. They are already there!! GRRRR. . .Nothing in the center. Turn 3: No contact in the East or Center as my troops march forward. Fighting gets furious and bitter in the East, as I expected. My T-34 knocks out a Panzer IIc with one shot, while a panzer IVE blows the gun off another one of my T-34s with one shot. This tank commander is executed immediately and the crew is order to charge the nearest machine gun nest head-on. Parts of AG Center are ordered to push forward and control the woods North of town. Ouch. Turn 4: Not much happening in the East or center, but AG West has it's hands full and it didn't take a genius to figure out I didn't send enough forces to the hill. Para's tanks are smoking like chimneys and I decide to send some of my vulnerable ground troops from the West toward the center until the tanks clear the way on the hill. I take control of the Northern-Most VF with a tank hunter team and a maxim MG. This is just a decoy. There is no way they can hold the area for long. Turn 5: I lost an armored car to the East, but the rest press on. I have one armored car with INF skirt the eastern edge of the map to hopefully surprise them from the rear and cause confusion. The center forces press forward albeit slowly. The West battle continues as my tank hunter team is spotted and pinned and the tanks hunt each other out. The terrain here is tricky and I need to be cautious. I had hoped the tank hunter could make it to the woods undetected and surprise the panzers GAGRAGRAGRGRAGRAGRGRAGRAGRGRGRAARGGRAGAARAR RGRG RG RG GRGRGGG G G G G!!! :mad: :mad: My next AAR will either be there late tonight or sometime tomorrow. :mad: I m kind of slow at this because I've never done it before. I'll get faster in the meantime. Plus I have many Krauts to torture in PBEM. :mad: :mad: Great AAR Para :mad: 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ParaBellum Posted January 5, 2003 Author Share Posted January 5, 2003 Nice AAR, Master Goodale! Here we go again, part II: Turn 6: On hill 230 my 50mm mortars are in position and set up while Lt.Becker's infantry reaches the hilltop. They come under fire from mortars and light tanks but suffer no losses so far. My infantry spots 3 light russian tanks north of hill 230, one of them is identified as BA-10. What's far more serious is that three T-34 are spotted NW of their position. Oh-oh... I've concentrated my three PzIVs and hope that I can engage MG's tanks one by one. My tanks have superior sights and a better ROF but I don't like the idea of them dueling with T-34s. Soon the PzIIIs will arive and then I (hopefully) will be able to setup a nice ambush position if MG decides to advance them west of hill 230. At the end of the turn the first T-34 comes into sight of my armour and Unt. Schumacher's PzIV engages him. On the hill east of the village at least two light tanks are spotted but move out of sight before they can be fully identified. Turn 7: Owww...Unt.Schumacher's PzIV is hit, the front turret is penetrated and the crew immediatly abandons the Panzer. Unt.Kalb's PzIV hits the T-34 but the round only partially penetrates the armour. AAARGHG! I hate the 75L24 gun! Then Lt. Reinhard scores another hit on the russian tank but the round bounces of the well-sloped frontal armour. In return, the russian tank hits Reinhard's tank, immobilizing it. But they are not yet ready to abandon their Panzer! The next AP round is loaded as Reinhard shouts to his gunner "Hans, aim for the turret!". This time the shell hits the russian tank, clearly penetrating its front turret armour! But what is that? The T-34 reverses down the slope! Loud curses are heard from within the german Panzer... Another T-34 is racing up the hill, trying to flank Reinhard's tanks. But Lt. Hoffman just arrived with two PzIIIs and together with Reinhard's remaining two PzIVs they engage the T-34, pumping round after round into the russian tank! In the village Kinkel's men have secured the 2nd VL and the Panzerjäger teams lie hidden in ambush positions along the roads. As Unt.Wittman in the cupola of his PzII scans the horizon with his binoculars another light soviet tank appears on the hill east of the village. "Tank! 12 o'clock, 300m, fire!" Meanwhile Reuter's men in the gully have almost reached the village, no enemy contact there so far. Turn 8: The T-34 west of hill 230 is cought in a deadly crossfire between Reinhard's PzIVs and Hoffman's PzIIIs. Only as a hatch opens and the panicked crew finally abandons their tank the german Panzers cease their fire. To the north the other T-34 appears again, but he has barely crept into view when Lt.Reinhard, cool as always during combat, gives the fire command. The round ricochets of the frontal armour and the Panzer crews wait for the T-34's 76mm gun to spit fire and death... The german tank fires first! Another 75mm round leaves the muzzle and this time the shell hits the turret of the T-34 and penetrates it! But...Lt.Reinhard doesn't believe his eyes when the russian tank AGAIN reverses down the slope! The Ivans in that tank must have nerves of steel! Meanwhile Lt.Hoffman's PzIIIs have reached their destination and taken hull-down position west of Reinhard's platoon. And again the two remaining T-34s creep into sight! Unt. Plöbsch's PzIII fires at the foremost T-34, missing it. But the T-34's gunner did a better job! His first round hits the PzIII, penetrating his armour. With the driver dead and the gunner and himself wounded, Plöbsch orders his men to abandon the tank. On hill 230 things are going a bit better. Obg Bernhoff destroys a BA-10 with his HMG34, well done! MG's reccon infantry is cut down as they flee from the small patch of woods north of hill 230. One of my light mortars is knocked out by enemy mortar fire and/or tank fire. Other losses are light. Kinkel's men in the village report enemy infantry in the NW corner of the village. Unt.Wittman's first salvo of 20mm rounds hit the light russian tank, identified as T-26, penetrating the turret front! Good shot! I think he deserves a better tank next time. A StuG maybe... But then the T-26 reverses behind some woods...Dammit! Reuter's men in the gully have spotted enemy infantry advancing towards Kinkel's force from the north. If MG is not careful I'll get some of his infantry in a nice crossfire from two sides. Turn 9: No good start... Lt.Hoffman's PzIII is hit by the first shot of the T-34, knocking it out immediatly. I'm starting to think that putting them frontally against T-34s wasn't one of my brightest ideas... So far I've lost one PzIV, got one immobilized and lost two PzIIIs for one knocked-out T-34. Well, at least his tanks leave my infantry alone as long as they are trashing my tanks... On hill 230 the situation of my infantry is not bad. Lt.Becker's platoon is in position, supported by my mortars and a HMG. His BA-10s don't do much damage and his T-34s still have to watch out for my remaining Panzers. In the village things are heating up. Unt. Lengsfeld's PzIII has entered the village and engages enemy infantry in the NW corner of the village. At the NE part of the village a lot of enemy infantry contacts are reported, looks like Reuter's men will arrive just in time. Here's a pic from the eastern part of the village showing MG's foremost squads and Reuter's and Kinkel's men closing in. Turn 10: Still the armour battle rages on hill 230! A T-34 advances and is hit by Reinhard's PzIV! The front turret is penetrated and...you guessed it: the russian tank reverses down the slope! NOOO! Not again! As he reverses out of LOS another T-34 comes into view directly in front of them and both PzIVs immediatly engage this new threat. That tank surely looks like swiss cheese by now... For the next couple of minutes minutes Lt. Reinhard is heard, cursing the Krupp factory, the Waffenprüfamt and the Führer... To support Obg Berndoff with his HMG34 in his struggle to hold off the BA-10s north of his position I send a Pz II around the hill to engage these russian tin cans. In the eastern part of the village heavy infantry fighting breaks out as Reuter's men advance along the gully towards the enemy positions. It looks like there's at least one platoon of infantry but I have about two platoons to engage them. I move a SPW251/1 into the village to provide fire support. Unt. Lengsfeld's PzIII engages enemy infantry and HMGs. Unt.Wittman knocks out a T-26 that rolled down the hill east of the village to support the russian infantry. The PzII is absolutely deadly against the light soviet tanks. But then this one is commanded by Wittman himself... Reuter's men have suffered some lossed but I think they'll be able to break through. Heavy infantry fighting is expected along the eastern boarder of the village. It looks like two of MG's infantry squads will have to bear the brunt of Reuter's attack, supported by two squads of Kinkel's platoon. According to my plan Lt.Becker's platoon should now attack from hill 230 the western part of the village but as long as MG's armour are looking for trouble there they'll have to wait. ...to be continued. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasterGoodale Posted January 5, 2003 Share Posted January 5, 2003 Turn 6: I order one of my BA-10s in Army Group West to area fire into the woods just east of the hilltop. I know the mortars and HMG are up there and am hoping to suppress them long enough for my tank hunter to make it to safety and for my other BA-10s to get into position. The tanks begin engaging once again and hunker down for a furous battle. Army Group East moves forward and encounters light resistance while it's 50mm mortar teams suppress the enemy on the hilltop to the west :mad: . Turn 7: To the West my T-34 takes a shot at one of the Panzer IVEs that comes into view. NICE SHOT! Front hull penetration. That team just earned itself a medal! Return fire costs the team a casualty and they retreat to rally. I order my T-34 with no gun to push up the hill into enemy fire as a decoy. They draw fire from 2 previously undiscovered PIIIH tanks. Meanwhile my 2 remaining T34s zero in. Turn 8: The decoy sacrifices it's lives for the motherland. The tank hunter team is wiped out by MG fire. The BA-10 continues the difficult task of suppressing an unseen enemy, and is distraught at the site of the tank hunter comrades falling in the wheatfields! The psychologically disturbed TNT does the trick along with the decoy, and 1 shot takes out a PIIIH! The men shout "AGRGARGAGRGARGRAGRGRAGRGRGRGG!!!!!" and raise their fists in glory! But they know there is another, and those P-IVEs aren't going anywhere voluntarily either. The rear-most T-34 is shocked and has taken a casualty. I know I won't be able to depend on them much longer. A T-26 to the east takes a hit by a PIIc and retreats. Army Group Center advances under inadequate cover fire. I currently control 2 of 3 flags, but holding them will be very difficult. Turn 9: My once-shocked T-34 rallies and takes out the remaining PIIIH with 2 shots! Phewey! That was close, I thought they were finished. They almost seem fanatical. For good measure my foremost T-34 pumps another round into the first knocked out PIIIH and lights it up good. Hehehe that's my boys. . . Heavy infantry fighting breaks out in the center! 2 platoons are advancing and I don't think I have enough men to stop them!! :mad: This is an outrage and I must decide quickly what to do. . .I tell them to stand fast and fight to the last man!! The T-26s to the East push forward, looking for a safe angle from which to suppress the enemy in town. I am discouraged with my decision to not just send them straight across the bridge, but no sense crying over spilt' TNT! Turn 10: Reinforcements arrive!! 2 KV-I M39 heavy tanks! I'm done screwing around. I send them straight in by road to face the oncoming infantry and halftracks head on. Unfortunately, my men encounter a PIII-H in the center of town!! I have nothing on hand to deal with this. Those KV-I's better hurry up. One of my T-34s in AG West loses it's gun to a P-IVE and retreats! OUCH!! A T-26 to the East gets knocked out by a hidden PIIc in the woods south of town! "Bastards!!" my men yell. "Fight like a man!!" :mad: 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laxx Posted January 5, 2003 Share Posted January 5, 2003 v.Nice, MasterGoodale, ParaBellum! Keep up the AARs and get them coming. It will be a battle studied from generations on, the dos and doans case study.... 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Panzer_Meyer Posted January 5, 2003 Share Posted January 5, 2003 Good Job both of you, this is getting better and better. Now with Kv-1's in the picture, Parabellum is going to have a tough time in the village and a tougher time overall to deal with them. His tanks can barely kill thos t-34s how is he going to deal with the Kvs. The only thing would be to kill it's protecting infantry and then close assault it with his troops. If MG keeps the KVs in the close confines of the village. Very good AAR indeed, keep it comming! 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Salkin Posted January 5, 2003 Share Posted January 5, 2003 Great stuff. Who has the movie rights? //Salkin Swede 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sripe Posted January 5, 2003 Share Posted January 5, 2003 To hell with the NFL playoffs, this is where it's at! Will MG's KVs tip the balance? Or will they walk right into Parabellum's AT infantry trap? Does Parabellum hold the upperhand with his comanding position atop Hill 230? Or will MG run roughsod with his flanking Army Group East? Oh its enough to make one self immolate in a frothy-foam of cuss words and molten TNT! 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Salkin Posted January 5, 2003 Share Posted January 5, 2003 Is it legal to bet on the outcome ? Maybe we should adjust the odds a bit, remember MG thought it was an attack scenario at first... //Salkin 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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