Mid Winter Massacre: Assault on Fortified Position

[Easy86]

This is the Thread for our Mid Winter Massacre. Please leave your questions here and we will make sure to answer them ASAP. We should also have time to discuss this over the next couple of Fridays.

I have also sent all of you an email of the scenario.

[Easy86]

NOTE: PAGE NUMBERS REFER TO PAGES IN “DAS BOOK”

Allied Mission

The German Army on the New Hampshire Front has put up a strong defense at the town of Tripol-Plé including a fortified line, as well additional fortifications at several strategic locations in the area. In order for the allies to advance across New Europe and liberate the people these strategic locations must be captured and held. Intelligence reports that there are no civilians in the area and that the enemy is very well entrenched so expect high amounts of resistance. It is more than likely that the enemy places as much important on the objects as we do.


Axis Mission

We have caught word through our intelligence that the allies are preparing a spearhead advance through the strategic town of Tripol-Plé. We believe this is to open their access to the rest of New Europe. You must fortify a front line and our other strategic hold outs in order to prevent the allies from moving forward, AT ALL COSTS.

Mission Board Layout
Two boards will be placed together with the long ends of the tables adjacent to one another. This will create the following:

Axis Deployment: 72” x 48”
Axis Fortification and Additional Deployment: 72” x 12”
No Mans Land: 72” x 6”
Allied Deployment: 72” x 30”

Mission Special Rules
- Preliminary Bombardment (pg 57)
- Prepared Positions (pg 8)
- Defensive Battle (pg 6)
- Delayed Reserves (pg 9)
- Scattered Reserves (pg )
- Fortifications (pg 56)
- Intense battle (pg 57)
- Total War (pg 66 – 75)

Scenario Special Rules
- Ambush: The Axis Team (all combined axis players) may place one of its platoons in ambush.
- Air:
- The Allied Force has been provided a flight of P47 Thunderbolts with Limited Air Support in addition to their armies
- The Axis Force has been provided with a flight of JU87D Stukas with Sporadic Air Support in addition to their Armies
-Tank Company’s: Each team may field up to one Tank Company.


PREPARING FOR BATTLE
1. Axis Forces will be defending and Allied forces will be attacking.
2. Each side must nominate an overall commander which will represent a higher command team. Any Company commander within 6” of the higher command team may re-roll its company morale check. Other than allowing company commanders to re-roll their company morale check, the higher command team acts exactly like a company commander team.
3. Each Side should arrange their companies per the structure laid out under Total War in “Das Book”
4. The Game Masters will nominate which force will play from which side of the table
5. The Game Masters will Place 6 objectives at key terrain locations between the fortifiable area and the defenders table edge. Each objective will have a different victory point value (see “Deciding who won.”
6. The defending side will now assign point values according to the procedure outlined in “Deciding Who Won”
7. Next the defender may place the fortifications they have chosen up to 12” into the attackers side of the table.
8. If the defending players receive additional fortifications then all fortifications are placed at this time. Fortifications may be placed anywhere in the defenders half of their table.
9. The defending players must hold at least 25% of their platoons in delayed reserves at the start of the game. The remaining platoons are now deployed up to 12” into the attacker’s side of the table.
10. The attacking player will now assign point values according to the procedure outlined in “Deciding Who Won”
11. The attacking players will now have 10 minutes to strategize and 20 minutes to deploy.
12. The Attacking player now deploys their entire force at least 18” from the table centre line. Remember, pioneer teams may be deployed 4” further forward, but not within 4” of any enemy team.
13. Both players now place their independent teams in their deployment areas, starting with the defending player.

BEGINNING THE BATTLE
1. Both sides begin the game in prepared positions, so their troops are in Foxholes and Gone to Ground.
2. The attacking player conducts a Preliminary Bombardment on the defender’s forces.
3. The attacking players now make their Reconnaissance Deployment moves for any Recce Platoons they have on the table. The Defender may not make Reconnaissance Deployment moves.
4. The attacking players have the first turn.

ENDING THE BATTLE
The battle ends when either:
The game master calls time or assigned time limit ends, or
 One side capitulates, or
 The defending team starts any of their turns from turn six with no attacking teams in the defenders half of the table.

DECIDING WHO WON
The side who scores the most victory points will win the scenario. Calculate victory points by using the following chart:

 1 Victory Point for each enemy platoon destroyed during the shooting phase
 2 Victory Points for destroying the higher command team regardless of method.
 Points for objectives (calculated at the end of the game):
1. Summary: Each of the six objectives will be assigned a point value for each side. This point value will indicate the priority given to taking (or defending) that objective. At the end of the game each side will be awarded the point value of the objective it controls. Point values will range from 1 to 6 and will be assigned secretly and randomly.
2. Each Side, independent of the other side will draw first for the listing order of the objectives (there will be 6 objectives and therefore 6 slips of paper)
3. Each Side, independent of the other side will then draw a slip of paper to assign each of the objectives on the list a point value. Each slip of paper will be labeled with a number (one through 6).
4. These lists are not to be revealed to the other side but must be revealed to the GM before deploying their fortifications.
5. At the end of the game the attackers will be awarded the victory points assigned to the objectives (on their list of objectives) that they control at the end of the game
6. At the end of the game the defenders will be awarded the victory points assigned to the objectives (on their list of objectives) that they control at the end of the game

ARMY BUILDING REQUIREMENTS
1. Armies may be built from any late war book.
2. All axis players must bring a company worth no more than 1500 points.
3. All Allied players must bring a company worth no more than 1750 points
4. Both Sides may only field one Company that is rated as a tank Company.
5. Neither side may field air support in their list (AOP’s are an exception).
6. Players may only have two tank platoons per non-tank company. A tank platoon is defined as such if the majority of a platoon's teams are rated as tank teams.
7. Each player should be prepared to use the Fortifications rules located in the hardback rulebook.
8. Each player should be prepared to use the Total War rules located on pages 66-75 of “Das Book”

Total War Rules Summary (for details see pages 66-75 of “Das Book”)

1. Combat Companies: Each Company must be a legal Combat company composed of at least the minimum required HQ and Combat platoons and may also include any of the support platoons allowed according to that companies organizational chart. Companies must be a minimum of 1000 points.
2. Support Group: All company and divisional support in your combat company fall under the support group and may be used to support any of the other combat companies in your sides force (see example chart on page 68).
3. Warriors: Your force may field as many heroes/warriors as you want so long as there is no more than one of each warrior and they are fielded with the company they are normally fielded with.
4. Air Support: See scenario special rules.
5. Company Morale Checks: A Combat Company takes Company Morale Checks when it is reduced to one platoon (rather than when it is reduced to half strength)
6. Support Group Morale: The Support Group does not need to take Company Morale Checks.
7. Fought To The Last: The game ends when you have no Combat Companies left – or – No support platoons and only one combat company
8. Strong Combat Companies: Flames of war recommends that for Total War you field three Combat Platoons in you Combat Company as having only 2 combat platoons can be fragile in Total War.
9. Inter-allied cooperation:
a. Allied Companies: independent teams cannot join allied platoons and teams cannot spot for allied platoons
b. Anglo-American Forces: British and US observer teams can spot for British and US artillery batteries that have staff teams.
c. German Domination: The Germans dominate a force if they have more Combat Companies than the rest of the major powers [in their force] combined. German Independent teams can join allied platoons in a German dominated force.

[kv1e]

It is a unclear from your rules and some of your earlyier comments about mutiple attacks on the same target in one turn, does each player have the abilty to call air support in a turn or does each side have the ability to call one ground support attack in a turn?

[Easy86]

Each Side will have the ability to call in one air strike per turn. Germans will have one flight of stukas with sporadic air support and the allies will have one flight of P47's with limited air support.

These are given to each side, in much the same way as they were at tanks given, Meaning they are not part of your army list but can be used in the game.

The only air power that may be included in each players army list will be an AOP.

[shoey109]

I am having a problem with a point restriction with a preliminary bombardment. I am fielding 75 percent of my restricted point army on the table. It's a 50/50 they get hit. If the dice goes bad. I loose allot of points. So I am farther back in the hole on points before the first shot.

Germans 1500 - (preliminary bombardment kills)= ____ against a 1750 point allied army with first attack. Then the Germans will suffer more looses before we even get to fire the first shot.

The cost to field a late war German force is costly. So 1500 points is not going to get me much. Then add scattered reserves in a trench fight? The German knows the attack is coming. They will have there reserves ready to fill any break's in there trench lines.

It's useless for the Germans to have a Tank company with a preliminary bombardment. That means 75 percent of the company will be in static tank pits. They will have to survive the bombardment. The other quarter in reserve.

I can see Temis bringing a Russian tank horde. Rush the line. New steve smokes our anti tank asset's. Temis machine guns our troops to death in the trenches. Then the day lives up to the events name. Mid winter Massacre.

I am not feeling so fuzzy playing this event.

Will

[scorchmark]

They said we get an ambush platoon? What if none of us defenders had tanks accept for reserves. Plus our one ambush platoon was a tiger platoon? lol when do we get to deploy our ambush and is it subject to preliminary bombardment. Im feeling pretty optimistic. I think we can pull off a defence victory!

[kv1e]

Feb 15, 2011 19:22:40 GMT -5 shoey109 said:

I am having a problem with a point restriction with a preliminary bombardment. I am fielding 75 percent of my restricted point army on the table. It's a 50/50 they get hit. If the dice goes bad. I loose allot of points. So I am farther back in the hole on points before the first shot.

Germans 1500 - (preliminary bombardment kills)= ____ against a 1750 point allied army with first attack. Then the Germans will suffer more looses before we even get to fire the first shot.

The cost to field a late war German force is costly. So 1500 points is not going to get me much. Then add scattered reserves in a trench fight? The German knows the attack is coming. They will have there reserves ready to fill any break's in there trench lines.

It's useless for the Germans to have a Tank company with a preliminary bombardment. That means 75 percent of the company will be in static tank pits. They will have to survive the bombardment. The other quarter in reserve.

I can see Temis bringing a Russian tank horde. Rush the line. New steve smokes our anti tank asset's. Temis machine guns our troops to death in the trenches. Then the day lives up to the events name. Mid winter Massacre.

I am not feeling so fuzzy playing this event.

Will

First of all Will you will have trenchs for your Infantry to hide in and provide hard cover so I will have to roll a lot of 6 s on my firepower checks to kill Infantry with MG fire. Further Steve has emasculated our army selection with his army restrictions that my oportunity to buy lots of tanks is somewhat limited.

In any case the problem with building you army is a commen German one you have added to your problems by trying to play with a SS unit Switch to an regular German infantry unit and you will free up more points. Remember that on top of your units you will have 60 points of fortification.

More good news I will proably be using Brits anyway so your troops will be fried and not Machinegunned anyway ;D ;D ;D

[Easy86]

he will actually have 90 points of fortifications. Don't forget to read the email i sent you and the note in the post that out lines the dimensions of the board.

[shoey109]

The trenches did not help my infantry last week against Steve's tank company. Steve was rolling 6's like mad. My infantry were just shot up to the point I was facing morale checks and I had to do a full retreat.

The SS unit I was looking at was for fearless trained troops. I'm thinking this trench fight battle is not my cup of tea. I will pass on trench fight. I think its too unbalanced.

Will

[jeremy3play]

I tend to agree with Will that in it's current form, it is unbalanced.
1750 vs.1500 so we'd be down 750 to start.
Preliminary Bombardments will kill off X amount of Germans before we even start, followed by the Allies having first turn to again kill x more Germans.
25% off table in delayed and scattered reserves.
Air imbalance.

However, if the allies think it's balanced...what say the Axis are the attackers?

[shoey109]

Feb 15, 2011 20:42:43 GMT -5 scorchmark said:

They said we get an ambush platoon? What if none of us defenders had tanks accept for reserves. Plus our one ambush platoon was a tiger platoon? lol when do we get to deploy our ambush and is it subject to preliminary bombardment. Im feeling pretty optimistic. I think we can pull off a defence victory!

Late war tiger platoons cost allot of points. Points we do not have.

Will

[shoey109]

Feb 15, 2011 22:27:27 GMT -5 jeremy3play said:

I tend to agree with Will that in it's current form, it is unbalanced.
1750 vs.1500 so we'd be down 750 to start.
Preliminary Bombardments will kill off X amount of Germans before we even start, followed by the Allies having first turn to again kill x more Germans.
25% off table in delayed and scattered reserves.
Air imbalance.

However, if the allies think it's balanced...what say the Axis are the attackers?

I will play if the Axis are the attackers.

[kv1e]

Feb 15, 2011 22:27:27 GMT -5 jeremy3play said:

I tend to agree with Will that in it's current form, it is unbalanced.
1750 vs.1500 so we'd be down 750 to start.
Preliminary Bombardments will kill off X amount of Germans before we even start, followed by the Allies having first turn to again kill x more Germans.
25% off table in delayed and scattered reserves.
Air imbalance.

However, if the allies think it's balanced...what say the Axis are the attackers?

Jeremy
You do get to try and save kills from the bombardment normally harder for tanks than Infantry. But most importanly Steve has increased the frontage 50% but has incresed the number of fortification points by
400%+
(on the normal big push the defender gets 60 points for a 4' x6' table Three German defenders will get in this scenario 90 points each or 270 total) Further play of the scenario so far as led to mostly Allied loses with a smaller German force(1325)

[shoey109]

Feb 15, 2011 22:42:51 GMT -5 kv1e said:

Feb 15, 2011 22:27:27 GMT -5 jeremy3play said:

I tend to agree with Will that in it's current form, it is unbalanced.
1750 vs.1500 so we'd be down 750 to start.
Preliminary Bombardments will kill off X amount of Germans before we even start, followed by the Allies having first turn to again kill x more Germans.
25% off table in delayed and scattered reserves.
Air imbalance.

However, if the allies think it's balanced...what say the Axis are the attackers?

Jeremy
The thing is that the percentage in Reserve has been decreased to 25% You do get to try and save kills from the bombardment normally harder for tanks than Infantry. But most importanly Steve has increased the frontage 50% but has incresed the number of fortification points by 400%+
(on the normal big push the defender gets 60 points for a 4' x6' table Three German defenders will get in this scenario 90 points each or 270 total) Further play of the scenario so far as led to mostly Allied loses with a smaller German force(1325)

In its current form. I will not be playing. When we first started playing. I remember the points were even. The first week it was a allied victory. The second week. It was a German victory.

It comes down to what you field with your points and how you play your army. The fortification's just slows down a army. A well thought out plan can breach fortifications and make a hole for a entire army to come through. Then all those points on fortifications down the line become useless.

WILL

[Easy86]

Temis, the rules are 90 points for every 6 feet of table edge or 60 points for every 4 feet of table edge plus the basic fortifications for every infantry team in the army (barbed wire and trench lines). which means only 90 points for the entire table. but with all of that infantry that is a lot more trenches and barbed wire.

The actual scenario requires at least 50% in delayed reserves. Steve and I changed that to at least 25% in delayed reserves. Which means the ability to put more than 25% on the board.

Scattered reserves was added for the nature or scenario. Germans coming in to help from all directions, who ever could make it in first.

The actual scenario also call for total air superiority which we have changed to be air for both sides. and allies cant use air in the first turn because of preliminary bombardment. you can still get air on 5's and 6's like usual.

Lets have steve and mike weigh in and play friday to see how it goes.

Steve and I are intending to have this be a fun game for both sides.

lets keep the comments coming