Hailstone
Posts: 666
Joined: 1/19/2016 From: Phoenix, AZ Status: offline
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Here's an early war scenario between the British and the Germans in Greece... Pyrrhic Victory Mavropiye, Greece, April 13th, 1941: On April 8th, just two days after the German offensive, it became obvious to General Wilson, commanding officer of the Imperial Expeditionary Force (IEF), that the Greeks would not be able to resist enemy pressure much longer. Consequently, he decided to redeploy his forces to the south, along with a shorter defensive line, anchored on wooded mountains and easier to defend. But he needed time to do so. Several units were detached from the IEF and placed under General Mackay. They started blowing up a series of bridges, managing to greatly slow down the Panzer Divisions. Even this was not enough though, and Mackay fought a first (and successful) blocking action at Vevi. Encouraged by the result, he decided to try again, 35 km to the south, at Ptolemais, a natural antitank ditch cut across the South road. This looked like the perfect spot from where to try stopping the onrushing Panzers. The clash was not long in coming. On the morning of the 13th, the 4th Hussars forward observation posts beyond the ditch came under heavy attack. The Germans quickly realized that it would be impossible to force their way through. A glance at the map indicated a possible solution: a trail bypassed the obstacle, but the ground was swampy and seemed impassable for the Panzers. Nonetheless, it was the only way out and had to be attempted. A few hours later the first German tanks showed up on the British flank. Game Length: 8 Turns For the Germans to win they must capture the town of Mavropiye For the British to win they must defend the town Germans: Squads, LMG's, ATR's, AFV's British: Squads, MMG, LMG's, ATR's, AFV's, ART Gun Boards: #3, #18 Aftermath: The fighting started right away. Two Hussars squadrons threw themselves at the Germans without further ado: the action turned into a slaughter. Despite their bravery, Sir Winston's Hussars were felled one after the other. Nonetheless, the German victory did not last very long. Rushing straight for the 1st Armoured Division's HQ, the Panzers stumbled upon the 2-pdrs of the 102nd Northumberland Hussars. Eight tanks were quickly knocked out and the German momentum was broken. And that was not the end of it. Two Cruisers squadrons, coming to help, set another five on fire within a few minutes. However, Brigadier General Charrington, the Brigades' commanding officer judged that it would be safer to withdraw without delay. Night was falling and it would be easier to disengage under the cover of darkness. Mackay's force escaped. But losses had been heavy. Too heavy in fact, for what proved to be the 1st Armoured Brigade's first, and last, action. Source: Tactiques magazine, Scenario ASL TAC 53, Phyrric Victory New version: previous version the AI kept placing an arty gun too big to fire from buildings in buildings. Replaced 4.5-inch Howitzer with 2-pounder AT gun (as in scenario description), Jan 21 2019
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< Message edited by Hailstone -- 1/22/2019 1:45:07 AM >
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