A game scenario for THEATRE OF OPERATION: The Libyan villa of Beda Littoria There are several stories of daring raids that occurred during World War II from both sides of the fines. Brave men risked personal injury or death in the attempt to alter the tide of war in one attack that was for "volunteers only". One such raid was undertaken by a group of British commandos in the Autumn of 1941. The events leading up to and during the attack are the kind of actions that Hollywood would use to make a classic movie in every sense. The British 8th Army was prepared to attack Generalleutnant Erwin Rommels Aftika Korps, which was besieging the Libyan port of Tobruk. In conjunction with this attack, the British planned a commando raid for the night of November 17th to kill or capture Rommel at Beda Littoria, Rommers Libyan villa and headquarters. A preliminary operation was conducted in an attempt to gather information and ensure a safe beach landing. Captain J. E. Haselden, an intelligence officer fluent in Arabic and Italian was inserted behind enemy fines to insure the raid was to arrive safely. On Thursday, November 13th, two submarines, the Torbay and Talisman, surfaced off the Libyan coast as night was beginning to fall. As the Talisman waited, Torbay maneuvered toward the shoreline in order to launch her 25-man force. Once the darkness set in, Capt. Haselden began signaling that it was safe to come ashore. The commando team, led by Lt. Col. Geoff-rey Keyes, an officer of the Scottish Guards, initiated their launch operation in twoman rubber rafts. Normally the Tobray could launch the commandos in about one hour, but as the first rafts disembarked a gale-force wind hit hard. The one hour launch turned into a six hour battle as the soaked and exhausted men finally reached shore. The rubber rafts were deflated and hidden for later withdrawl. Onboard the Talisman, the operational commander, Lt. Col. Bob Laycock, anxiously awaited for his force to begin their run to the shore, as Talisman's captain debated over whether to delay the landing until the following evening or launch the force in a three-hour window of opportunity. The mission was considered too valuable to waste time, so Laycock and his men readied themselves for the launch as Talisman moved toward shore. The landing was a complete disaster. High waves swept men and equipment into the raging sea. The remaining hours of the night were spent rescuing and retrieving rafts and water soaked men. Despite all of this mayhem, Laycock and 12 commandos reached the shore and met Keyes and the rest of the force. On Friday, November 14th, the commandos found themselves attempting to dry out their equipment under cloudy skies and chilling temperatures. Lt. Col. Keyes waited until roughly 8 p.m. to give the order for the all-night advance inland. Laycock and three other men remained on the beach to protect the escape route and maintain contact with the submarines. Haselden and an Arab companion withdrew into the night air to rejoin elements of the Long Range Desert Group. After two days of traversing extremely rugged terrain and constant exposure to rain, the commandos found a cave which to seek shelter in. This provided excellent cover and allowed the men a well deserved rest before the final stage of their mission. The following day, November 17th, as a severe thunderstorm moved through, Keyes took a reconnaissance run to get a look at the villa and make a map for use in deployment of his force for the assault. At about 6 p.m., the final phase of the operation was put into action. Trudging though mud that was at times almost knee deep, the commandos waded through the night for six hours. Scouting about fifty yards ahead of the men were Lt. Col. Keyes and Sergeant Jack Terry, while the main party was being led by Captain Robin Campbell. As the raiders closed in on the villa, Lieutenant Roy Cook and six other men broke away from the rest of the force to cut communication lines with Cyrene and Tobruk. Instructions were given to all commandos positioned around the perimeter to treat anyone not coming through an assigned withdrawal route as enemy. The success of the mission will rely on surprise and speed. Scenario Begins The game scenario begins at this point, where the commandos are just outside the perimeter of the villa. Remember the main objective is to find Rommel and capture him. If this option is not conceivable, then the order is to kill him where he stands. After the mission is complete, return to the extraction point for pick up. This is a predetermined scenario so all German troops should be preset before the game begins. The exception to this are the troops located in the hotel which is off table. There are three troops out on patrol around the villa and one outside the gatehouse. Also, there are at least three troops located inside the garage. They are working on the engine of a Panzer II. You may place nine other troops inside the buildings of your choice. The command group must be placed inside the villa. If you want the possibility of Gen. Rommel being present, roll I D6. If the result is a 6, then Gen. Rommel has decided to stay at the villa for one more night. Check the map for building types and locations. It is close to 2400 hours. The only activity in the compound are the patrols and the crew working on the Panzer. There are four buildings that are illuminated; the gatehouse, powerplant, garage and villa. these buildings emit a fight that extends in range from 6" to 12". This can be designated by using a yellow or orange tee from your weapons fire box. Depending on the intensity of the fight, it will illurninate a radius outward from the wall. Any troop caught is this radius will automatically be spotted. If a troop is located 6" beyond this radius, he will be spotted if he is kneeling or standing, not prone. If a troop is 12" beyond the original radius, he will be spotted if he is standing only. Troops 19" beyond the light are not automatically spotted. This takes in account the camouflage and training they received. Any German troop may attempt to spot a Commando if they roll a morale check at a -2. If successful, then the Commando is spotted. Any Commando that moves in an area that is not illuminated must make a morale check or he will step on an item that makes a sound. Any German troop that is out in the open may hear this sound if they are within 24" of the offender. Troops inside buildings will hear the sound if they are within a distance that is equal to their morale score. German forces are set up from the German army list, however I threw in a doctor figure for some added fun (the Brits won't know it is a doctor). British troops are determined by adding the Commando bonus, There are 12 troops available. Two troops will also be given the officer bonus of +1, these are Lt. Col. Keyes and Capt. Robin Campbell. Capt. Campbell speaks a broken German dialect so any attempt to do so will require a morale check at a -2. All Commandos are armed with sub-machine guns and grenades. The two officers also carry pistols, Other items worth mentioning are the garden. Inside all movement is halved and he of sight is reduced to 4". There is a motorcycle located in front of the villa. You may also add other vehicles to this game, just remember that none of these vehicles should be manned, all crews would be resting inside. If weapons fire should erupt, eight troops will arrive on the scene. These will come from the hotel. A map has been provided by a local Arab boy of the villa. Some Egyptians were sympathetic with the Germans so it will be up to Lt. Col. Keyes to trust this map or not. Buildings A and B are troop quarters. Building C is the gatehouse. Area D is a stockyard for camels, any troop will step in camel dung on a D6 roll of 5 or 6 while in this section. Building E is the powerplant A water fountain is located at F The garage is G. The villa is located at H and the garden is L. The dotted line indicates barb wire fences of the light variety. All swirled lines are hedges. Escape routes should be set up by the commanders, keep in mind that this is a small part of a larger action. Any troops that do not exit on a planned route will be treated as enemy! Good Luck! Map Back to Table of Contents Penny Whistle #24 Back to Penny Whistle List of Issues Back to MagWeb Master Magazine List © Copyright 1997 by Lion's Den 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