Flames of War Late War

Soviet Tankovy vs. German Otto Carius JagdTiger and Michael Wittman Tiger Lists

My buddy Karl and I had some great Thai food today then went up to Cullison's games for some FLAMES OF WAR.  Karl graciously brought a couple of 1515pt LW German armies to give me some practice games using the Soviet Tankovy list I'm planning to take to Austin for the Late War Nationals at Bane of War in January.

We roll up SURROUNDED and I get the high die roll to attack.  It's a fairly open winter terrain table with some small line of site braks in the middle with a few hills and a woods or two.  Karl shows me his game face.  GITSUM!

I go heavy on one flank with a Tankovy Company with Dedov and my Spetnatz dismounted with the ISU 122's ready to move up to infiltrate.  My battalion CO is with the assault guns.  A second tank company is down on the far end of the table to threaten the other objective.  The Germans have panzerfaust armed infantry around the near objective with a Jagdtiger on the far hill.  Karl places his immediate ambush and independend team Jagdtigers against my main effort. 

 

My Spetznatz roll the ISU's up into bombardment position against his infantry, Karl rolls a 6!  Ohhhh nooooossss he discoveres my infiltration move and gets first turn!  I get off cheap, though, with an ISU and a T34 destroyed and another T34 bailed, then I attack.

 





I got to work on his infantry with the assault guns and try to move the T-34's away from the awesome firepower of the Jagdtigers.  An air strike destroys one of his JT's and the other in the platoon gets bailed and runs away.. my right flank is now open for maneuver.. waaahooo!  Karl is pounding me with Carius and his 2iC on my left, unfortunately, but the Soviet juggernaut rumbles forward destroying enemy infantry teams in their foxholes to open up the objective.  The Spetznatz are doing well taking the enemy's Gone to Ground away so they are easier to hit.

 

My other tank company halts to get some long range rear and flank shots against the Jagdtigers.. No sir they don't like it!  Carius and the other JT on the hill turn to engage them and the T34's have to start playing run and hide as they can't hurt the JT's frontal armor at all.

 

On.. ON for Mother Russia!  German infantry are dying and the Soviet armor advances towards the near objective.

Carius, his wingman, and a Luftwaffe strike finish off the ISU's.. DOH!  At least the German infantry finally break. 

Karl's air support definitely outplayed mine today.. killing lots of my armor and chasing off no less than 6 of my air strikes over two games.  Damn their eyes!  But on this particular strike, my Yak nailed another JagdTiger near the objective.  The Spetznatz have begun to move dismounted towards the objective, too.

Carius keeps his company in the fight, for 5 turns at least, rolling two dice for a 5 to prevent army break.  My Spetznatz finally secure the near objective by a couple of assaults that forces back Carius and the one other Jagdtiger and start their turn within 4 inches of the objective.  I lost the ISU's and a Tankovy Company, so it's a a 4-3 win for the Soviets!  Nice game, Karl.

Game 2 we roll up CAULDRON and I roll low die to defend.  I spread out my T-34 company to help push his deployment back and keep my ISU 122's in Immediate Ambush. I have another T34 Company and Spetnatz in delayed reserve. 

He starts with two 2 tank Tiger platoons on the board with FlaK and Recce in Reserve. 

My ISU 122's quickly reduce his onboard strength to 1 Tiger platoon by destroying the other platoon with their immediate ambush fire from a conveniently wooded hill and it's game on!

Michael Wittman ambushes.  He kills an ISU and bails another.

I hide and play for time.. and luckily on turn 3 my other tank company with Dedov come in behind the enemy Tiger and Flak and Recce platoon, don't kill anything, but the enemy return fire whiffs in return.  With the other Tigers busy, my ISU's and a T34/85 move out and destroy Wittmann.  He didn't make it to Normandy! 

The enemy throws in the towel and it's a 6-1 win for the Soviets.  OOOOORRRAAAHHH for Mother Russia!

Thanks for the practice games, Karl.. good times today!  :)

FLAMES OF WAR

2,000 pt MW Team Tourney

Eclipse Games, Rolla MO

Great time at the Rolla tourney yesterday!  Our game club had 3 of the 6 teams present.  Mike and I set up a desert table as we were playing a DAK Panzer Kompanie and Afrika Schutzen Kompanie, and of course, we never got close to the desert table hahaha

 

Round 1 we are fighting Blue vs. Blue in BLIND DOMINATION on a nice table our bud Tony set up vs. a team of winter themed German Spah and Pioniers from Novakistan.  I immediately blow our sportsmanship points by using my artillery to smoke their advancing Ferdinand, doing an impressive imitation of an armored train, then punching his top armor with a bomb from a Luftaffe Stuka.  Of course, much hooting and hollering and gesticulating and hilarity ensured.  The Novakistanis were kind to enough to indulge our Orky behavior.  :)

 

 

Both teams are basically in a big furball in the middle fighting it out for Domination Points while trying to not get one of our armies destroyed.  We lose a platoon of Panzers to AT and Infantry Gun fire and their Pioniers and a captured KV 1 tank push against a 2 Pt Domination Objective with only my Recce to contest it.  Acckk!  

 

 

So... we go defensive in the middle. I holler "HILFE MICH!", and my team mate Mike sends another Panzer platoon over to machine gun the bejeezus out of the Pioniers and they break.  On the far flank, one of my Schutzen platoons manages to wipe out a AT Gun platoon in assault and cause a 2 point flip on Dominations points, giving us the 5-2 win as time runs out.  Fun game!



 

 

Round 2 COUNTERATTACK and we face up with our club buddies Rich and Mike using US Armored Rifles and British Motor Company.  We decide to take a friendly picture before the game.  

 

Then we try to kill each others' armies!  Mike and I are attacking so we ignore the objective in No Man's Land that will easily be reinforced before Turn 6 by Rich's mobile elements coming in from Delayed Reserve, and go for the throat with a power assault by tanks around the right and a push forward by the Infantry.  Mike and Rich, I realized when I saw this that those two PaK 38 guns WERE with the platoon that later got destroyed instead of the platoon on their right.  They should have been picked up before later killing one of our Vickers MG teams.  ACK!  My bad, brothers.

 

We continue to get good service from the Luftwaffe as we use bombs and direct fire from Mk IV F2's to take out the Churchill platoon.  The Germans are laying fire all along the defenders line and causing massive enemy casualties.

 

 

Losing one Schutzen platoon in assault due to some nice work by the Allies defensive fire and then counterattack, the remaining Germans finish off the enemy with artillery, infantry, and tank fire before the enemy's reserves, not beginning to arrive until Turn 3, can interdict.  5-2 Win for the DAK team!

 

Round 3 SURROUNDED we defend facing Will and Ian's KV 1 and Moto Raz Battalions.  They go heavy tank on one flank and Raz and Recce on the other.  We dig in with our AT guns and Artillery in direct fire support mode.  There's very little cover in the center of the field so the Panzers take whatever cover is available, and the enemy attacks. 

 

 

Luftwaffe gets some again!  Our Stuka driver did a nice job all day long.  He nails two KVs, 2 Valentines ,and chops up Will's Moto Raz on their main attack flank.  I enjoy my moral victory and am surprised a photobombing Will wasn't giving me Rabbit Ears.. or something worse.. hahah

 

The enemy's main attack, or at least the Battalion Commander's KV and the one remaining in the company jumped by the Stuka, pushes around the heavily defended objective and begins to go for our other flank where our Panzers, Recce, and Schutzen are chopping up the Moto Raz and Recce.  Valentines and Raz keep pressure on the defended objective to try to keep them from flexing to help the other side.  Mike loses a Panzer platoon to the flanking KVs and fire from the other KVs pushing into the center.

 

Ian pushes his other KV company towards the less defended objective, Mike's Panzers close in to help in case of emergencies but the enemy has left his flank exposed to AT and Artillery fire from the other objective!  It blows away the attacking KV 1 Company.

 

The enemy present the universal signal of "Damn you we give up!" and it's another 5-2 win for the DAK team.  Wooohooo!  We win Top Team for the day.

A great day with great friends.. enjoyed everyone's company very much!  See you all at TANKER TREAT in October. :)