Chain of Command Battle Report: Attack and Defend

Vlad and I got another game of Chain of  Command in last week.This time we played the attack and defend  mission. I played the US Airborne attacking Vlad's German Heer. The US were supported by three Sherman Tanks, and and engineer section (comprising of a flame thrower team and a demolitions team). The Heer platoon was supported a Panzer IV and a Flakpanzer with a 20mm cannon.

The Americans objective was to get the demolition team in contact with the 88 flak batteries (which were not able to fire- they were just an objective). Obviously the Germans objective was to stop them. This game was played out using Vlad's 15mm figures and terrain.

The Germans began the game holding a farm house with good sight lines covering the objective, and their two armored vehicles threatening the roads heading towards the 88 battery.I deployed my paratroopers in the cover of a near by farmyard, and set up the light mortar were it could fire on the Germans defenses. I was very lucky, winning three or four turns in a row near the beginning of the game.My Sherman managed to fire on the Panzer IV. It still took five shots to knock the Panzer out! never the less, with the Panzer gone, I could bring the rest of my platoon up to attack the trenches and farm house. 

I used my Machine gun teams to suppress the German infantry while my rifle teams maneuvered ever closer.The Flakpanzer was a bit of a pain, as it sat right back and used its High Explosives to slow my advance up the roads. Vlad was uncharacteristically unlucky and only managed to kill a couple of paratroopers with the Flakpanzer before my Sherman was able to knock it out. After that it looked bleak for teh Germans, as  I used my Paratroopers to suppress the Germans while I was able to bring the engineers up to use their flame thrower to clear out the defenders. All the time the Shermans and the light mortar dropped a lot of HE shells on to the German defenses.

Vlad was unlucky that I knocked out his Panzer IV before he got to do much with it, as it meant I was free to maneuver closer to the targets. I was pleased with how well able to use fire and maneuver tactics to advance through cover while suppressing the Germans. As paratroopers are Elite solders the -1 to the Germans shooting due to the effects of suppressing fire meant that it was very hard for Vlad to stop my men advancing. 

Here are a few pictures from the game...

15mm Chain of Command Battle Report

I managed to get a game in with Vlad at the Earlswood Wargamers last week. We played Chain of Command, using Vlad's 15mm scale figures. I played an american rifle platoon supported by a couple of M5 Light tanks, and Vlad played panzergrenadiers. 

For this game we plated on a 6x4 table and kept all ranges etc the same as they are in the 28mm scale game. this gave the game a different feel than using 28mm figures, as the perspective was altered to make the battle field feel much more open. it has other advantages to, as vlad was able to offer a vast choice of support options for me to choose from, from Shermans to M10s, to artillery and antitank guns. the low cost of 15mm tanks compared to 28mm scale means that you can pick and choose freely, so each battle will be quite different. 

Vlad's scenery was lovely too, and this was the first outing of Vlad's complete set. 

We played a strait forward meeting engagement, with my infantry platoon advancing up a lane in Normandy, and running into the Germans coming the opposite way. 

Here are some photos...

An M5 Light tanks moves rapidly up the lane, scouting out potential German positions...

 Sneaky Panzergrenadiers emerge form a french farm house ready to sping an ambush. 

Having spotted movement in a ruined farmhouse the Yanks deploy along the hedgerow. 

German MG's pin the Yankee gun team in place while a squad of Panzergrenadiers assaults their position breaking their moral and driving them off.  

A German NCO directs fire from the ruined farm house...

The lead M5 uses its co-ax MG to rake the Panzergrenadiers behind the hedge. But what is this coming around the corner of the lane?

A German Panzer IV comes in to view and opens up on the M5....the plucky little tank is damaged but continues to rake the German infantry with MG fire. 

The American GI's move up to support the tanks, one team throws smoke to try to protect the M5 from the Panzer IV.

One of the American GI sections breaks under sustained fire from the Germans. 

The M5 was eventually knocked out by Panzerfaust, having survived two shots from the Panzer IV and a Panzershreck from the Panzergenadiers command section. 

This battle ended in a victory for the Americans...but only just. The American force was down to one force moral when the loss of a junior officer drove the Panzergenadiers force moral to zero...you couldn't get a close fought battle.