The 3rd Armor Division has just blown through northern France and is headed for the Rhine. Small towns and villages were bypassed in order to get to the important objectives. The Germans held this area for more than 3 years. Consequently, German troops are everywhere, not as divisions massed, but as small units, under the responsibility of NCO's, now cut off from all orders. American and British units, held in reserve and to act as the body pool to flesh out front line units after initial actions, are available for everyday, short-term operations. Task these small groups of basic trained men to clean up Patton's leftovers, to wipe out pockets of resistance. These are called Mop Up Operations and this is where we begin. A squad from the Red Ball Express (see the movie of the same name) has been tasked with mop up duties during a lull in the 3rd Armor's resupply efforts. The squad leader is a crusty old sergeant who rotated from a front line unit only a month ago. He's been given two fire teams of four men each, a machinegun team, and a bazooka team. The machine gun team is made up of two Red Ball drivers, Motor Transport types. They both whined about getting pulled from their racks for what they called "gorilla" duty. They were even more unimpressed after picking up the .50 cal machinegun to see that it weighed about as much as they did (not really, but perception can become reality). The bazooka team is manned by two youngsters fresh from the states and the only two volunteers for this mission. The American reinforced squad is tasked to clear and hold a cross roads outside of Caen. The remnants of a German Platoon have been cutoff. It's been hours since their last communication and all sounds of battle have faded into the distance. Sergeant Schmitt looks around at his remaining seven men and one broken down tank. These men are hardened veterans, but they are tired. The tank has one remaining round for its main gun, no machinegun ammo, and what's left of the crew is feverishly working on the engine. The infantry served together following the initial Blitzkrieg to the coast. Now, the American schweinhund have taken away most of their comrades, their French ladies, and now their higher headquarters. Angered, Schmitt decides that they will defend this crossroads at all costs. There is nowhere else for them to go. US Figures: US Sqd Leader Fire team 1 Ldr Rifleman Rifleman BAR Gunner Fire team 2 Ldr Rifleman Rifleman Rifleman MG Team Bazooka Team German Figures: German Sqd Leader Rifleman Rifleman Rifleman Rifleman Rifleman Rifleman Rifleman The following is the listing of cards used for each army's sequence deck. Card Type US German Heroic Moment 2 1 Officer Check 2 2 Infantry in Open 4 2 Infantry in Difficult Terrain 2 2 Tactical Initiative 1 1 Infantry Target Acquisition / Reload 3 3 Heavy Weapons Target Acquisition / Reload 1 0 Hunker Down / SNAFU 1 0 Dig In 2 2 Major Morale Check (when required after losses) 1 1 Brilliant Leader / Command Indecision (Leader Quality) 2* 2* Additional Assets Arrive (1st occurrence only - see chart below) 1 1 Armor Move in Open (put in after Tank is fixed) 0 1 Mechanical Check 0 1 Confused Withdrawal 0 1 * After leader quality is rolled, put in the appropriate cards. No more than two of one or the other type card is used. Brilliant Leader cards can cause an imbalance in the game if used incorrectly. Additional Assets Arrive! Roll on this chart for each side when their Add. Asset card is drawn, apply results 1 : 2-man patrol links up with the squad (carrying rifles) 2 : US: halftrack arrives, but breaks down, can provide HMG fire from entry point on road - German: Additional mechanic arrives, up one die to fix the tank 3 : US: Truck drops off medic, 4 hits to kill members of the fireteam he attaches to - German: 1-man scout patrol returns 4 : US: 1 rileman joins up (attach anywhere) - German: 2-man patrol links up with the squad (carrying rifles) 5: Scout Plane flies overhead, treat as Tactical Initiative Card (1d10 impetus pips added to initiative) 6: US: No additional assets arrive - German: Ammo resupply, convert one rifleman to a machinegunner (MG34-LMG) Table is 4'x 6'. The destroyed buildings are preferably 2-story (to give the Germans some firing angles). It's best if the Americans start just above the line shown instead of near the top of the table (hastens the action). Also, place a hill on the left side of the table to prevent the tank from having a clear shot at targets off the road (on road targets are a different story). Scale played was 20mm. Victory Conditions: Either the Americans will kill all the Germans or force them from the buildings or the Germans will force the Americans to withdraw after taking losses. In this scenario, I haven't seen any in between. The tank is more of a distractor than anything and does not figure into victory. Designer's Notes: The Americans oftimes spend an inordinate amount of impetus attempting to take out the tank (after much debate as to "why don't I get a tank?"). Keep in mind the objective of clearing the area. If you must take out the tank, do it last. The trees provide cover for the advancing troops, but don't completely restrict German fields of fire. It helps if the Germans take pot shots at the advancing Americans. Keep track of Bazooka rounds expended. I would only give the Americans 3 or 4 rounds at the beginning of the game. At this level, I also would use tactics of mutually supporting fire and not spend all my impetus moving only one fireteam into position. The American player will need both fireteams and the machinegun to seize the objective. Back to The Gauntlet No. 10 Table of Contents Back to The Gauntlet List of Issues Back to Master Magazine List © Copyright 1997 by Craig Martelle Publications This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other military history articles and gaming articles are available at http://www.magweb.com