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Section Leaders:
Fionn Kelly & Madmatt
The
Sunken Lane
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German Commander - Fionn
Kelly
NOTE: SPOILER INFORMATION. This After Action
Report contains detailed information regarding units and terrain
disposition to a scenario that may be included in the release version
of Combat Mission. If you wish to play this game Blind or partake in a
Double Blind match then READ NO FURTHER!!!!
Graphics Note:
While the events in this AAR were played on a very recent Beta Build of
Combat Mission. The graphics, at that time, were not finalized. For
Final Graphics please view the POTD Feature which runs daily here and
various features on the CMHQ-Annex site.
Turn 4:
Thought Processes:
1. The situation is unfolding well. Bil’s tanks haven’t played much of a
part at all in the game and I’ve roughly located 5 out of the 6 he
started with. He appears to be putting two tanks behind each advancing
company. This is interesting because it shows evidence that Bil is
conducting a “wide front” advance and isn’t concentrating his
forces at a Schwerpunkt as I would do.
2. Bil has a total of 6 infantry platoons available at this point. 3 of
these platoons have been severely battered. Another 2 are in my sights
and in the open and cannot advance any farther. Only one platoon is
unaccounted for. I suspect that it is advancing somewhere in the region
of the Sunken Lane since all the evidence I’ve seen intimates that
Bil is not keeping any combat reserve to speak of.
3. The above points lead me to conclude that Bil is attacking on a wide
front without any tactical reserves. Now that I’ve learnt this about
him I can assume that he will continue to do this for the rest of this
scenario and the rest of my plans and enemy threat assessment will be
based on the assumption that Bil will continue to act as he has done up
until now.
Orders Phase:
I order the platoon on my
leftmost flank to advance across the wheat field there and thus get in
“behind” the enemy company to the left of the road. Elsewhere it is
really just a matter of pouring it on and holding my positions.
Teichert’s platoon is,
however, ordered to fall back from its current position. Bil’s losses
here have been disastrous and I want to pull back before he can bring
his third platoon to bear.
Action Phase.
This general overview shot
shows the locations of each of my Panzergrenadier platoons and the
general movement orders given to them. The only order of any great
substance is to Giesey’s squad on my left flank which is ordered to
push across the wheat field in preparation for an attack into the
enemy’s rear.
As you can see, by the end of this turn, Giesey’s
platoon has begun to cross the wheatfield. I forgot to factor in the
time it took them to pass through the bocage so they’re a bit behind
where I thought they’d be.. All in all this extra delay means that
they’re now about 1 turn behind “schedule”.
As Teichert’s platoon begins to fall back casualties
reach an extreme level. Teichert’s platoon now comprises only 18 men
instead of the usual 34.
Suddenly more British troops suddenly appear in the middle of the
road. I had absolutely NO idea these troops were here even though they
must have been within 40 metres of my position for the last minute or
so. Score another one for the FOW in Combat Mission.
This shot is taken from the position of Bertram’s platoon just
across the road from Teichert’s platoon. Mere seconds after the last
picture was taken we can clearly see an entire infantry platoon
advancing on Teichert’s retreating platoon. This new British platoon
wipes out Teichert’s HQ squad and the survivors of two of his squads.
Only the 6-man strong squad which fell back first has escaped this holocaust.
Unfortunately for Bil the Panzergrenadier squad of
Bertram’s platoon with good LOS across the road manages to take this
entire platoon under fire and quickly eliminates the platoon HQ and
kills roughly half of the entire platoon in mere seconds.
Bil’s attack has wiped out
Teichert’s platoon as an effective combat force but, in so doing, he
has assured the loss of the third platoon on this flank. The combat
power of one of his two companies is now virtually destroyed and all it
cost me is a single platoon. Not bad.
On my right flank Bil is being a bit more cautious and his
tanks are laying down some direct HE and MG fire on the forward slopes
of the slight ridge running through the rightmost portion of the map.
Unfortunately for Bil almost all of my men are positioned on the
REVERSE slope of this ridge and so are quite immune to any suppression.
He must definitely be badly rattled if he is beginning to
lay down fire like this though. I can’t blame him though since his
losses have truly been horrendous. In the picture above one should also
notice the Panzerschreck team in hiding on the forward slope of the
ridge. I have ordered it to hide in ambush and engage any tank which
passes over or near the ambush marker. At that range the Panzerschreck
shouldn’t miss and it should definitely make Bil even more fearful of
attacking when one of his tanks goes up in flames.
Examination of British Losses to date.
On my left flank 3 platoons
have been committed to the attack at this stage.
Platoon 1 is the name
I’ll give to the platoon nearest the wheat field on my left.
Platoon 2 is the name
I’ll give to the platoon nearest the left side of the road.
Platoon 3 is the name
I’ll give to the platoon which just attacked across the road.
Platoon 1
:
Has lost 1 squad entirely.
Its other 2 squads are down
to roughly half-strength each.
Its Platoon HQ element is
still present.
Confirmed losses: 10
Estimated losses: 20 ( I figure the other two squads are down to half-strength
each)
Platoon 2:
Its platoon HQ element has
been eliminated.
Has lost all 3 squads.
Confirmed losses: 34
men. (the entire platoon).
Platoon 3:
Its Platoon HQ element has
been eliminated.
Each squad has suffered some
losses and comprise 7, 6 and 4 men respectively.
Conclusions:
Platoon 1 is too weak to be
capable of offensive action.
Platoon 2 has been totally
eliminated.
Platoon 3 has lost its HQ and
so is incapable of offensive action ( I’m going to attack across the
road so as to wipe it out next turn also so it won’t survive another
minute.)
On my right flank we can see
that 3 platoons advanced across the wheat field. I’ll call these
platoons 4,5 and 6.
Platoon 4:
Platoon HQ:
1 survivor
Squad 1:
1 survivor.
Squad 2:
8 survivors.
Squad 3:
10 survivors.
Confirmed Losses: 14 men.
Survivors:
20 men.
The staggering discrepancy in
casualties in the 4th platoon can simply be explained by the
location of the squads when my ambush was sprung. The platoon HQ and 1st
squad were in the lead and bore the full brunt of the ambush. The 2nd
and 3rd squads stopped well outside my ambush zone and thus
suffered little loss
Platoon 5:
Platoon HQ:
Unknown.. It panicked and ran off at the start of the turn.
Squad 1:
1 survivor:
Squad 2:
1 survivor.
Squad 3:
2 survivors.
Confirmed Losses: 26 men.
Survivors:
8 men.
Platoon 6 is the platoon
which advanced and wiped out my rightmost squad in the bocage. By the
end of this turn it is in full retreat across the wheat field and
comprises the following:
Platoon HQ:
3 survivors.
Squad 1:
2 survivors
Squad 2:
4 survivors
Squad 3:
5 survivors.
Confirmed losses: 20 men.
Survivors:
14 men.
In addition to this I have
killed a couple of the platoons’ accompanying mortar and PIAT teams.
Basically these statistics
tell a great story for me. I’d have to say that only two of Bil’s
platoons could, in any way, be even considered capable of offensive
operations. Even these two are extremely marginal and I wouldn’t want
to use them to advance myself. However, with his strong tank support
Bil can afford to put in a weak infantry attack just to force me to
reveal my positions so his tanks can shell me to hell and back.
Of the 224 combat infantrymen
(with rifles) in his two companies Bil has definitely lost 121. This
leaves him with only 103 combat infantrymen anymore and most of those
are either panicked or are part of shattered formations.
In other words, I’ve
achieved my goal of ensuring that Bil’s main attack is going to have
to wait for his reinforcements to show up. I lost a further 25 men in
doing so but, basically I have lost a total of only 44 men which means
I’m exchanging roughly 3:1. Even better than that most of my damage
is concentrated in 1 platoon whereas all 6 of Bil’s platoons are on
the ropes and in terrible shape.
It is DEFINITELY time
to counter-attack and hammer his infantry while they’re still
punch-drunk.
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