AAR: Point Defence Outside Overloon 1944

A battle report using the Bolt Action rule set depicting a
skirmish outside Overloon, Netherlands, in the autumn of 1944.

Introduction

First off: happy new year!

For awhile now we have been looking into WW2 gaming and this year will hopefully feature some of progress in that field. Our ambition is to try out several different rule sets that works for platoon sized gaming, meaning that each side features about a platoon of infantry with some extra support. Chain of Command, Bolt Action, the Battlegroup series and others - there are many options out there. Our forces are close to become quite adequate for platoon sized gaming but as any wargamer know there are always additions that need to be made...

What better way to launch a new subject on the blog than an AAR? We start off our WW2 gaming with a scenario set on the Western front, outside the Netherland city of Overloon, in the autumn of 1944. The failed Operation Market Garden had resulted in a salient between the cities of Eindhoven and Nijmegen. In order to protect that corridor and push the Germans back across the river Meuse the Allies launched Operation Aintree. One of its objectives was to take the city of Overloon. The task was initially given to the US 7th Armoured Division. The Germans, mainly of Kampfgruppe Walther, which included paratroopers of the 21. Fallshirmsjäger regiment, put up a stout defence.

For our battle we had the US armoured infantry with Sherman tank support advance on a ruined hamlet outside Overloon. The US knew that German paratroopers were in the area but speed was of the essence. The Point Defence scenario tasked the US forces with seizing three key objectives close to a ruined hamlet within a limited number of turns. If no objective was taken by the US the game would be a German victory. If one objective was taken the game would be a draw. The US would win if they could take more than one objective.

After a rather weak preparatory mortar barrage, which only resulted in a few pinned German units, the Americans begun their attack. We had the game start with a rather reckless rookie Sherman crew advance unsupported into the cross hairs of a hidden Pak40 anti-tank gun. With a large explosion the Sherman tank was turned into a flaming wreck and the fight was on.

The first Sherman tank advance ahead of the infantry with disastrous result.

The opposing forces

A reinforced platoon of the 7th Armored Division (Regulars)

2nd Lieutenant and runner

Bazooka team

Sniper team

Medic

Infantry squad: 12 men with one submachinegun and one BAR

Infantry squad: 12 men with one submachinegun and one BAR

Infantry squad: 12 men with one submachinegun and one BAR

.30 cal Medium Machinegun team

.30 cal Medium Machinegun team

60mm Light Mortar team

M4A3 76mm Sherman tank

A reinforced platoon of the 21. Fallschirmsjäger regiment (Veterans)

2nd Lieutenant and runner

Panzerschreck team

Sniper team

Medic

FJ Infantry squad: 9 men with one submachinegun, two assault rifles and one MG42 light machinegun

FJ Infantry squad: 9 men with one submachinegun, two assault rifles and one MG42 light machinegun

FJ Infantry squad: 9 men with one submachinegun, two assault rifles and one MG42 light machinegun

Tripod MG42 Medium Machinegun team

80mm Medium Mortar team

Pak 40 anti-tank gun

The table

A 6x4' table.

Blue = German deployment zone.
Red = US objectives.
The US enter the table from the left.

The Game

The Germans had taken up good defensive positions in the ruined hamlet and its close surroundings. A MG42 machine gun team and a sniper occupied the central buildings with good fields of fire while a fallshirmsjäger squad guarded each flank. Yet another squad advanced up a muddy field reinforcing the German right.

The German center and right - with the tripod MG42 visible in the ruins
and two infantry squads by the muddy field and orchard at the end of the line.

The Sniper team's nest.

The end of the line. A Fallshirmsjäger squad
in the orchard next to one of the objectives.

Meanwhile, an American platoon advanced on the hamlet. One squad on each side while the third was sent on a flanking move. On the American left the sniper team and .30 cal machine gun team took up positions by the road covering the advance of an infantry squad. Having seen what happened to the first Sherman tank that travelled along the road the US commanding officer sent the Sherman 76mm tank off road to approach the hamlet from the right. Preceding the tank was an infantry squad that took cover behind a small hill. The light mortar and bazooka took a more central route towards the group of autumn coloured trees in the middle of the battlefield. 

The US 7th Armored Division arrive on the scene.

The Sniper team moves into position on the US left.

The bazooka team at the central autumn copse.

The Sherman 76mm tank supports the infantry on the US right.

Shots started to fly as the opposing forces closed on each other. In particular the German tripod machine gun proved to be a headache for the Americans as it was well protected in the ruins and had excellent fields of fire, keeping the Americans pinned and making their advance slow.

The US moves slowly under fire.

On the US right the Sherman fired 76mm shells at the fallshirmsjägers across the fields but with little effect. One of the German squad instead advanced on the Americans. Perfectly timing their attack a US squad lying in wait moved up on the small hill that separated them from the fallshirmsjäger and opened fire on the Germans in an open field. However, as the smoke cleared from the fire fight it became apparent that the US regulars were no match for the seasoned fallshirmsjägers. Most of the American shooting failed to find their mark and in return many US soldiers died while the rest were pinned. Taking the fire and movement drill to the Americans the fallshirmsjägers followed up the fire fight by assaulting the pinned US squad wiping them out.

"Over the top, boys!" The Americans moves up on the crest
firing on the Germans in the open field below.

The fallshirmsjäger veterans only take light casualties however...

...and return fire with devastating results...

...to later move in for the kill, wiping out the Americans.

At the same time the US support teams were having difficulties in the center as the tripod MG42 continued to suppress them, the autumn trees not giving any real cover from "Hitler's buzz saw".

However, the US fared a bit better on their left were the US 2nd Lieutenant kept the advance going,  with the sniper team and .30 cal machine gun providing covering fire. Things got worse for the Germans on that side of the hamlet as the flanking US squad appeared on the forested ridge looking down on the Germans in the orchard. With speed being of the essence the US used fire and movement drill to the fullest as the two US squads now attacked. As the Germans exchanged fire with the  flanking US squad the other US squad seized the opportunity and rushed over the road to get close to the hamlet itself.

The flanking, third US unit suddenly appears on the forested hill...

...overlooking the Germans in the orchard and one of the US objectives.

With the Germans in the orchard occupied by the flanking US squad
other US soldiers rush across the road, closing in on the hamlet.

Over on the other flank the Sherman tank engines roared as it went around the small hill and opened up with its machine guns on the fallshirmsjägers who had wiped out the US squad. Even though some Germans fell they didn't rout but instead rushed the tank with grenades and panzerfausts!  Grizzled veterans indeed! However, the tank's armour held and it brushed the Germans off as it moved away towards the center of the battlefield to support the more successful attack on the US left.

The Sherman tank engages the German fallshirmsjägers with its MG's...

...but get assaulted in return.

On the US left the flanking American squad charged the Germans in the orchard wiping them out and securing the first US objective. The rest of the Germans fell back to the hamlet itself creating a new defensive line. The center US squad was not far away though and men fell on both sides in the continued fire fight.

The flanking US squad attack the orchard and kill its occupants, claiming an US objective.

The remaining Germans fall back to the ruined hamlet...

...as more Americans close in.

The fallshirmsjägers in the hamlet were now hard pressed. They were caught in a crossfire taking fire from three sides with the flanking US squad advancing on them while the center American squad was engaging them in a point blank range fire fight. To make matters even worse the Sherman tank came up from behind with its machine guns blazing. The US were now only metres away from their second objective and victory.

Too close for comfort!

But it was too late. Time was running out. The attack was on a tight timetable and the US didn't manage to fulfill their objectives on time. All was not lost however as the Americans had gained a foothold in the hamlet. It was a draw.

In the closing moments of the battle a fallshirmsjäger hiding in the ruined hamlet aimed his panzershreck at the US Sherman tank driving by. The rocket hit home and blew the Sherman turret high up in the air.

"Steady now..."

Ka-boom!

Conclusion

It was a fun game. In the beginning it looked like the Americans were going nowhere but when a more decisive advance got rolling on the US left, coordinated with the flanking squad and with the Sherman tank adding its machine guns to that attack the US came really close to a win. As it turned out the US started of too cautiously to have enough time to secure a win in the end.

Our first WW2 game for the blog and with the American player not having played Bolt Action before it was a bit tentative at first. All in all Bolt Action provided a good game with its activation system giving a tense, smooth and including gaming experience through out. Some things are not as good though like troops not being very punished for being caught in the open and some weapon ranges - for example the US 60mm mortar with the rules as written has a range of a mere 24 inches. It feels like they could leave the mortar in the depot and toss grenades by hand instead. :-)

The challenge with writing semi-modern rule sets like these are that the players have a rather good idea of what "should" be the outcome from a historical stand point. A problem that isn't as pronounced in lets say a Fantasy or Sci-Fi setting or even in a setting of more ancient history. 

This is not one of those Bolt Action bashing texts however. Bolt Action is perhaps more of a "Game" than some of the other WW2 rule sets but that doesn't have to be a problem. Competitive tournament play can be a alot of fun as long as both players know what they are in for. Also, criticism is often heard towards Bolt Action for that its force selection point system encourage less historical and more competitive force selection. The way we see it such problem is maybe not so much a problem with the rules as with the players. The Bolt Action rule set could handle the "historical" line ups we used just fine, probably as well as a more min-maxed force selection.

I'm sure we will play more Bolt Action games but we are also very much looking forward to try other WW2 rule sets as well.

English Archers 1475. Lots of them!

What once was a late Hundred Years' War project has now developed into something set a few decades later.

In 1475 Edward IV of England invaded France. In reality the invasion never led to any major hostilities but instead resulted in the Treaty of Picquigny between Edward IV's England and Louise XI's France where France basically bought themselves peace with England.

As there is little room for peace in wargaming we will instead run a "what if" project. Richard, Duke of Gloucester (later Richard III), and others though such a treaty to be dishonourable. So in our setting the invasion will lead to all out war.

After a hiatus, painting has now begun in earnest. First off on the blog are English archers. Lots of them. More than a hundred to be precise. Basing etc is still to be done of course. The figures are from the excellent Perry Miniatures and their plastic War of the Roses range in 28mm.

A sample.

100+ English archers served on a plate.

AAR: Treason! - a 15th century skirmish

A battle report using the Lord of the Rings ruleset depicting
a 15th century surprise attack on a castle

Introduction

After some time focusing on other periods and rulesets it was long overdue to get a game or two in of our late medieval Swedish civil war campaign. As suspected other commitments delayed the AAR but here it is, and hopefully it was worth the wait.

The scene is late 15th century Sweden that suffered from civil war as different families and factions struggled for power. Later historians could describe it the end of a rather long, although not peaceful, Nordic union (”Kalmarunionen”, 1397-1523) with Sweden breaking away from Danish influence.

With the Rebel Bishop involuntary isolated in the sanctuary of the church (see how that happened in the AAR HERE) the Rebels now plotted their revenge and next move. During the fall more bad news arrived as it became clear that some factions of the Thott family negotiated with the Unionists. Being pragmatic a young lord of the powerful Thott family apparently had noticed the weakened rebel cause and now looked into other options. Rebel spies informed that a Unionist leader, the local Sheriff, now secretly visited the Thott lord at his castle to negotiate future collaborations. The long hated Sheriff was a man who just refused to die! Only a year or so earlier he miraculously survived a close encounter with two rebel crossbow bolts! (see how that happened in the AAR HERE).

The Rebels realized they had to act decisively in order to stop more men from leaving their ranks. What better way to fight the traitor of the Thott family than with treason? To fight fire with fire. By old loyalty - and promise of lots of gold - one of the Thott soldiers was ready to betray his master and open the castle gates for the rebel attackers. A plan was made and the Rebel knights rallied their men and the allmoge peasant soldiers loyal to their cause. The castle should burn – and the traitors and Sheriff with it!

The scenario start with the castle gates being opened by the rebel traitor at dawn to allow a small group of selected rebel soldiers, having snuck up to the castle walls during the dark hours of the night, to enter the caste. They are tasked with holding the gatehouse - and keep the gates open and portcullis up - giving time for the rest of attackers to leave cover and charge across the open ground to the castle. As the remaining castle guards are sure to raise the alarm the defenders will wake up and randomly arrive to try and repulse the attackers.

The game was played using a slightly adapted version of GW’s Lord of the Rings Strategy Battle Game with 28mm miniatures from Perry miniatures on a 6x4' table.

The opposing forces

The Castle Retinue (Unionists)

Castle Warband 1

1 Sheriff (Non-playing Character)

Castle Warband 2

1 Knight on foot (the young Lord Tott)

12 Soldiers with halberds and spears

Castle Warband 3

1 Veteran Captain in full plate

Castle Warband 4

1 Veteran Captain

8 Soldiers with crossbows and handguns

Castle Warband 5

1 Veteran Captain in full plate

5 Castle Guard Soldiers (including 2 handgunners and 1 archer)

The Attackers (Rebels)

Rebel with a cause 1

1 Traitor

Rebel Warband 2 

1 Knight Captain on Warhors

8 Men-at-arms on Warhorses

Rebel Warband 3

1 Rebel Noble

10 Peasants Allmoge Soldiers with halberds

Rebel Warband 4

1 Peasant Veteran Captain

10 Peasants Allmoge Soldiers with crossbows

Rebel Warband 5

1 Peasant Levy Leader

10 Peasant Levy with spears

Initial set up

A 6x4 table.

Deployment

Red = Rebel Deployment.
Blue = Union Deployment.
Green = Difficult Ground.

The Game

Dawn broke over the Thott castle. The castle was protected by a marsh that not only covered its rear and sides but also passed between the front of the castle and the firm ground of the close by forrest. A road from the forrest and a wooden bridge gave dry passage to the castle gate.

As the first rays of sun hit the castle the traitor guard, loyal to the rebels, uncermoniously dispatched his fellow guard at the gatehouse, took the stairs down and opened the castle gate. 

"I never liked him anyway." The traitor kills his guard colleague at dawn.

Outside a small group of chosen rebel soldiers waited. They had carefully moved into position at the darkest hours of the night and now quickly advanced into the castle. As they did so they put custom made poles up against the portculis, blocking it and making it impossible to release unless you entered the vault and removed the poles.

"Psst! Let's go!" The rebel assault group gets moving as the traitor open the gate.

As they entered the courtyard the armoured men came face to face with a monk on his way to Matins, the morning prayers. Pausing momentarily they were still looking at each other when shots and calls of alarm rang out from the main tower. The intruders were detected!

"Pax vobiscum? No?" As the monk finds out
the intruders are not men of peace. At all.

The guards in the main tower raise the alarm and open fire...

...killing a rebel intruder.

Now many things happened at once. The rebel main force who had been waiting in the tree line broke cover and started their advance across the marshy ground before the castle. More shots were fired from the tower. Also, shouting were heard as the change of the guards, already dressed, were about to enter the court yard.

Rebels in the woods.

The attack is lauched.

The mounted rebels took the lead as they spurred their horses across the wooden bridge. They galloped along the road to get to the now open gates.  They had to get there before the small group of rebels holding the castle entrance were overwhelmed and the portcullis dropped. The rebels on foot carrying ladders were not as fast. In particular the rebels tasked with flanking the castle had to wade through the boggy ground losing momentum - and getting very wet.

The mounted rebels gallop across the bridge...

...while the rebel infantry has a long way to go.

In the courtyard the small group of intruders held their ground. At least for the moment as more and more defenders poured into the yard. With them the young Thott lord in his white feathered helmet.

"Who dares to attack my castle?"
The young Lord Thott arrives on the scene.

The Unionist defenders advance against
the intruders holding the open gate.

The exchange of bullets, crossbow bolts and arrows intensified both in- and outside the walls. As the fight for control of the gatehouse continued the rest of the rebels closed on the castle. The defenders was now getting more men on the walls as the guards of the main tower also kept firing.  Although some bullets found their mark, overall it had little effect on the rebels so far.

The Unionists man the walls and open fire.

Rebels closing in on the castle,
wading through the boggy ground.

The fight for the gatehouse intensifies as more defenders arrive.

The defending unionist now started to find their mark. Some rebel peasants fell dead from unionist shooting and one mounted men at arm fell from his sadle as the road forced the cavarly dangerously close to the ramparts. 

The rebels take casualties as they advance through the boggy ground.

More and more defenders arrived in the yard and the rebel intruders were forced back. The rebel traitor learned the price of treason as he was cut down during the melee.

A traitor's reward. The rebel sympathiser is cut down.

The small group of rebel soldiers holding the gate house were now hard pressed and were forced back yet again, their backs literally against the wall. Almost all of them lay dead in the mud as the last three survivors fought like mad men to hold off the unionists. The wooden poles blocking the portcullis was only a few steps away for the young Thott Lord as he alarmed saw the rebel men at arms dismounting outside the still open gates. In a last attempt to get the portcullis to drop he furiously hacked his opponent down, but before he could remove the poles he was himself attacked by no other than the Lord Sture himself. The opportunity to drop the portcullis was lost.

White feathered young Lord Thott is almost at the gate!

The few rebel intruders are hard pressed - three
against thirteen! - but help is on the way.

The cavalry arrives at the gate, dismounts and storms through the gateway.

"For Sture!" The water lily pads of the Sture family banner fly
inside the castle. Bad news for the defending unionists!

The bad news continued for the defenders as the rebels were now also at the walls raising their siege ladders. Also, some rebels had taken up positions and was showering the walls and tower with crossbow bolts. The defenders were not giving up however and killed the first man up a ladder and more rebels were shot from the tower. In the end though a rebel leader was able to gain the first foothold on the castle walls. 

The rebels get the ladders to the walls, paying in blood.

Rebel fire support from the bridge...

...as the rebels scale the walls.

First rebel on the ramparts. The Rebel Levy Captain attack.

"This is not looking good."
The Sheriff in the window is considering his options.

At the gate house the fight continued as rebels poured through the gatehouse. The exhausted rebel men at arm who led the first group of intruders was killed just as the rebels were beginning to get the upper hand at the castle entrance.

The rebels gains more ground at the castle entrance.

With the rebels now up on the ramparts on two different places and the rebel men at arms in firm posession of the castle entrance it certainly looked bad for the unionists. The unionists still fought on but they could not turn the tide. Men fell on both sides as the fight continued none the less. But step by step the unionists were pushed back, down from the ramparts and into the yard itself.

The sly union Sheriff realized he had to act in order not to be caught by the rebels. There was fierce hand to hand combat almost all over the castle as the sheriff unnoticed climbed up the rampart overlooking the vast swamp on the back of the castle. With assistance of one of the union loyal monks he go hold of a ladder and sliped over the wall. He was gone.

"Let's get out of here!"

"He who fights and runs away may live to fight another day."
The Sheriff leaves the fight to others but is really good at the running away bit.

The Sheriff flees into the swamp.

As more unionist fell and the rest got cornered in the yard the young Lord Thott realised all was lost. The unionists laid down their weapons and surrendered the castle to the rebels.

The Rebels had won!

Surrounded and outnumbered the unionists surrender.

"Monk, are you sure this is the way?" As night falls the monk continues
to lead the Sheriff on hidden paths through the swamp.

Conclusion

In the end the unionist defenders were overwhelmed but it was some really close moments during the game. The young Thott Lord was only one turn away from being able to remove the wooden poles blocking the portcullis. Had it droped the outcome would have been something else completly. As it now was the rebels were not able to resist the attack at three places at once.

Interestingly the castle itself helped the attacking rebels in the fight for the gatehouse. Being build to help the defenders withstand a larger attacking force the passage inside the gatehouse is quite narrow. This now worked to the attackers advantage as the unionist could not benefit from their initial advantage in numbers. That, and a bit of luck, helped the rebels in holding the gate until the Sture cavalry arrived.

The castle was also very much the prime motivator for the scenario itself. We wanted a battle that took place both in and around our newly finished castle model. The treason concept and narrative then followed naturally and gave us a great game and part of our continued campaign.