A WW2 scenario, ideal for a smallish club game. Depending on the number of players you should be able to play this in an evening or afternoon. It is a battalion level attack & defense action, using tactical rules such as 'Firefly', 'Hell & Fateful Decisions' or 'WW2 on a Sheet of A4' (The Journal No. 11) or similar (I would think it would also make a rather nice, albeit small, 'Command Decision' level game - Ed.) It can be used with 6 to 20mm figures.

INTRODUCTION

As the BEF were being evacuated at Dunkirk, many other British forces were still in action within France, desperately trying to slow the German advance southwards between the Somme and the Seine. At an important road junction 8km north of Rouen, another British ad-hoc force prepares to halt the panzers......

BRITISH BRIEF & OOB

It is 3.00 pm. The skies are clear and it's hot. Your orders are to defend the junction against German attacks from the north. The longer you can hold, the more troops and supplies can be evacuated from Rouen to the south of the Seine. Retire south at nightfall (around 10.00 pm).

Deploy in map rows A-F.

All troops may start fully dug in and camouflaged. Two roadblocks can be set up, each of barbed wire mixed with AT mines.

No anti tank grenades are available for your infantry. You have no radios but you do have telephones. You should draw your telephone lines on the map prior to the start of the game. Note that these lines can be cut by shells, bombs & tank tracks.

BRITISH FORCES

4TH Provisional Battalion All Good Morale & Average Training.
Battalion HQ:
	2 x Rifle Squads 2 x Lorries 2 x Motorcycle Runners 1 x Boys AT Rifle
4 Companies, each of:
HQ:	1 x Rifle Squad 1 x Boys AT Rifle 1 x Lorry
3 Platoons each of:	4 x Rifle Aquads 2 x LMG Teams 2 x Lorries
AT Platoon:
	4 x 25mm Hotchkiss AT guns 4 x Lorries
2 x MG Platoons, each of:
	4 x Vicks MMG teams 2 x Lorries

GERMAN BRIEF & OOB

It is 3.00pm and hot. You are to drive south as swiftly as possible and head for Rouen (leave table off road at A6). There are light enemy forces at Isneauville but as this has been repeatedly dive-bombed no real resistance is expected. Any delay to your advance is unacceptable as Rouen must be capture as quickly as possible.

All German forces enter the table from the road at H3. The German commander must decide his order of march prior to the start of the game.

Before the start of the game, the Germans may launch 6 Stuka strikes (each comprising of 4x Ju 87B) against the village.

GERMAN FORCES

Elements Of 5th Panzer Division All Good Morale, Well Trained.
HQ:	3 x PanzerBef 1 3 x Rifle Squads 4 x Trucks 1 x Kubelwagon
1 x Panzer Company:
HQ:	2 x Panzer IVC
2 x Platoons, each of:	3 x Panzer IVC
1 x Platoon of:	5 x Panzer IIB
1 x Motorcycle Company:
HQ:	1 x Rifle Squad 1 x Truck
3 x Platoons, each of:	10 x Motorcycle Combinations 6 x GPMG 3 x 50mm Mortars 2 x Rifle Squads
1 x Platoon of:	4 x MMG 2 x Trucks
1 x Recce Platoon:	6 x Panzer IB
1 x Motorsed Company:
HQ:	1 x Rifle Squad 1 x Truck 1 x Kubelwagon
3 x Platoons, each of:	4 x Rifle Squads 6 x GPMG 1 x PzB39 4 x Trucks
1 x Platoon of:	2 x MMG 3 x 50mm Mortars 2 x Trucks
Off Table Artillery Support:
2 x Batteries, each of:	4 x 105mm FH18 Howitzers
(Both these batteries may have an OP team on table)
1 x Battery of:	4 x 150mm sF18 Howitzers
(This is in general support only and does not have an OP team.)

GERMAN REINFORCEMENTS

These become available after 2 hours.
2 x Motorsed Company:
	(Details as previous)
1 x Panzer Company:
HQ:	2 x Panzer IIE
1 x Platoon of:	4 x Panzer IIE
2 x Platoons, each of:	5 x Panzer IIB
1 x AT Platoon:	3 x 37mm PAK35 3 x Trucks
1 x Gun Platoon:	2 x 75mm IG18 Infantry Guns 2 x Trucks
1 x Mortar Battery:	6 x 81mm Mortars (Dedicated to Motorized infantry CHQ support)

THE BATTLE


Large Map (slow 112K)

In the actual battle the British inflicted heavy casualties on the Germans, who persisted in frontal attacks for most of the afternoon after the cutting was blocked by a mined tank. The well led and organized British retired at nightfall. German losses included 12 tanks and possibly 1 Stuka.

UMPIRES NOTES

Terrain

All woods are dense, impassable to all but tracked AFV and infantry. Guns & other vehicles can be hidden in the edges. The area marked as conifers in F4 is also rough ground and only passable to infantry. The cutting has steep banks and so cannot be crossed by vehicles. Any tank knocked out in the cutting will effectively block the road. The stream is fordable by all except wheeled vehicles. All roads are fence or hedge lined. Scatter plenty of fields, ditches, footpaths and 'hull down' depressions about.

Ed: Mark didn't say how much terrain information should be given to the players, I would imagine the British know most of it, the Germans don't. I would suggest either that the British deploy via a map, or the British deploy on table and the Germans must pre-programme all their moves until contact is made.

Stukas

British positions are not visible from the air, so effectively the dive bombing effect is blind. The Stukas may be engaged by the LMG teams. The results of the dive-bombing will also be unknown to the Germans unless something obvious is hit like a vehicle park.