Scenario

1942 Soviet attack to capture two villages defended by Germans, while holding 1 village of their own.

Soviet TO&E

All Regular

Rifle Regiment of 2 Battalions
1 SMG Battalion
1 Cavalry Battalion
1 Tank Battalion (with 1 T-34, 1 KV-1, 2 T-70, 2 T-60)
120mm Mortar Battalion ; 2 guns and crews each with medium truck
152mm Hwtz Battalion 3 guns, each with crews and medium truck
Air support ; 1 La 5

German TO&E

All Elite

Infantry Regiment of 2 battalions
Panzer Kampfgruppe: 1 Command PzkwIIIH, 2 PzkwIIIH, 2 Pz Grenadier companies )
105 Howitzer Battalion ; 3 guns each with crews and sdkfz 11

Prelaid defences
Barbed wire across frontage. and 6" on open northern flank (southern flank was on a river). The Panzer Kampfgruppe was in reserve, it could not be deployed unless a significant threat (ref decision) was identified.

The Game

The Soviets were told they had as many turns as needed to capture both villages, but had to keep their village. The German player was told to hold his villages.

The Soviets started with a 4 turn bombardment of the Northern German village followed by an airstrike, this eliminated the Spotter and damaged the German battalion defending there.

The Soviets left 1 Battalion and the Regt HQ troops to hold the Southern village, sent 1 battalion plus KV-1 to pin the Germans in the Northern village frontally, while sending all the rest of their force around the open Northern flank of the Germans.. these were spotted by a German Patrol and so activated the Kampfgruppe reserve that moved to counter the threat..

Infantry gun, Mortar and Machine gun fire stripped the Soviet armour of their infantry which delayed the assault for a number of turns.. but in that time the Soviet artillery destroyed the Northern MG coy and forced the Germans to abandon the village.. the Soviets threw away the Cavalry battalion to hold the German PZ Kampfgruppe while sending unsupported armour through the Northern village to attack the Central one.. what remained of it fell back to the Northern village in time to be met by a German counter-attack which was beaten back..

The game ended with neither side having enough strength to occupy the Northern Village, though the soviets were regrouping enough to give it another try..

End result: a Tactical German victory.

The Soviets would have been better to use their cavalry to support the armour attack on the Northern village that should have stopped on that objective to secure it before trying to take the Central Village. This would also have given them the opportunity to shell the Central village and put in an air attack before the Soviets made a concentrated attack.