D-Day - 6th June .... Utah Beach
As dawn breaks the assault on Fortress Europa begins, US infantry speed toward their designated beach ... as the German prepare their defences and lay in wait ...
Another Tuesday night, another model club. This week we played Bolt Action, using an additional scenario, 'Bunker Assault', published on the Warlord games website (
www.warlordgames.com).
In short, the defenders (Ze Germans) have three defensive lines set up across a 6ft game board, each defensive line consisting of a bunker and 18" of hard cover, in this case the hard cover was earth banks.
The worst picture in the world ... you can, just about, make out the three defensive lines..
The US have 10 turns to take all three bunkers to win, two bunkers to draw and one bunker is a loss.
To play the game in the spirit of our scenario background we decided that no vehicles were permitted, the armies would be solely infantry..
The Germans fielding three regular infantry squads, a mortar, a sniper and an officer. The squads all armed with 2 LMGs to try and keep 'der Yankees' at bay.
The US fielding two twelve man regular squads, an eight man engineer squad (avec le flame thrower! ... which is French for 'with the flame thrower'), two eleven man Ranger squads, a mortar, a sniper and an officer.
Rangers and engineers...
The navy barrage opens up on the German defenders, but, hunkered down in their bunkers, they only take a few pin markers ....
Turn 1 - 'starboard side six, port side six, move fast and clear those murder holes ... keep the sand out of your weapons, keep your actions clear, I'll see you on the beach'
With the regular infantry squads and engineers given the unenviable task of the first wave we begin our beach landing, the Germans get the first dice out of the bag placing the squad in the front bunker on 'ambush' ... the first squad of Americans land and charge straight up the sand to the earth works on the edge of the beach, taking three casualties on the way in, the remaining squads following their lead and avoid any further punishment ... that is, of course, until a single short rings out catching the flamethrower square between the eyes ... the US troopers have lost their best weapon against the German bunkers!
Turn 2 -
(It's all a bit much for 1st squad and they fall back into the sea..)
With the first wave high up the beach, the Americans push on ... the engineers assault the bunker without the support of the flamethrower, orders are orders, and narrowly overcome the defenders, however, the casualties prove too much and they break and run. First bunker taken on turn two ... this is going to be a piece of cake ...
The German mortar team open up, having pre-sighted the entire beach a direct hit was inevitable, the GIs taking two casualties. Obviously shaken by the 'deadeye' accuracy of the Wehrmacht the squad fail their orders spectacularly and end up back in the sea ...
Turn over, all in the balance ...
Turn 3 -
With the first wave on the beach in it's entirety, the second wave begins to arrive ... two full US Rangers squads!
However, with almost unbelievably accurate mortar fire from the single team at the back of the German deployment, the American advance becomes bogged down and is slowed ... there is no further advance this turn .... the remaining German MG42s are left scanning the horizon for an opportunity to present itself ...
Turn 4 -
Quality work from Mr Clay...
With indecision rife in the American ranks the German artillery starts to make the decisions for them ... another direct hit from the mortar team combined with the push of the Rangers arriving in droves, forces the US troops to start moving of the beach.
Turn 5 -
This is it!!
Full advance on all fronts, having calculated the distance that they require to cover, and the number of turns left, nothing but a sprint through open ground up to the final bunker can win this for the U.S of A ... with the support of their own mortar laying down smoke, Rangers and infantry charge over the earthwork defences ... if that smoke can stay in play for a turn or two running directly into the jaws of death might actually work!
Dan C (aka Rommel) gives us all an incite into the deepest recesses of his military genius and declares his battle plan ... 'I've been working on a six turn strategy' .... erm, no Dan, this runs for ten turns ...
Turn 6 -
The US start to make their advantage in material show by calling in an airstrike on the German sniper team, the veteran sniper continues to pour fire into the 2nd German bunker and the sprint for the final bunker continues apace ...
The roar of engines and the thud of heavy machine guns announces the arrival of the USAF ... the ground where the German sniper had been keeping infantry units pinned down erupts into mud, smoke and splintered wood ... nothing is left standing as the P51 rises back out of sight ...
Turn 7 -
The breeze coming of the sea picks up and to the horror of each GI ... all of the smoke carefully laid down by the mortar teams ... dissipates.
German MG42s open up with everything they have pinning one Ranger team and cutting one of the infantry squads, attacking the far defensive position, to pieces. It is all a little too much for these particular men and the US troopers rout.
Turn 8 -
All that is left of the assaulting army are the US Rangers, on the left a well placed mortar round puts a wall of smoke between them and the German guns ... on the right, yet another, dead eyed shot from the sniper team puts another pin on the bunker ... so distracting, in fact, that the Wehrmacht inside would rather keep their heads down than fire at the elite troops rushing their position. No fire from either bunker this turn.
Seeing the earlier devastation caused by the German mortar team, a second airstrike is called down on their position ...
... the skies remain empty ....
Turn 9 -
The American infantry position themselves to assault the German bunkers, armed to the teeth with SMGs and superior numbers it unlikely it will end well for the defenders ... just as one brave German officer sallies forth from his bunker and manages to take a Ranger with him before becoming a walking colander, the familiar sound of engines and machine guns is heard .... the German mortar team meets the same fate as the sniper team ...
... the whole game comes down to the last turn, if the Germans can just hold off one assault they could come away with a draw ...
Turn 10 -
.... the Germans are wiped out to the last man.
US victory.
In conclusion, the game was incredibly enjoyable ... we have had some thoughts about defending troops when we re-run it out on the Eastern Front and will find it interesting how the battle will run with entirely different assaulting forces ...
