How to Win the Iron Cross

So today was a day for Battlegroup. My friend Robin, who is a Flames of War player, wanted to try something different and asked me to take him through a game of Battlegroup. So that's what we did.

I used two 400 point list that I've used before -  British Armoured Motor Infantry against regular German infantry. The Brits had an infantry platoon mounted in M5 halftracks with a Cromwell troop for support (plus other stuff). The Germans' had a platoon mounted in trucks with a troop of StuG IIIG's in support.

Robin wasn't fussed about which side he would play so I chose to go German because I'd played this British list previously and wanted to try the other side.

We played a Recce Screen scenario. Starting with only our recce units and trying to out maneuver each other. The idea being that the side who loses the recce game has to draw a Battle Rating chit at the end of d6+1 turns and before the game proper begins.

We chose table corners and deployed out units 20" from our corner. We both had 2 units so we rolled to see who took first turn. Robin's Brits won and so he moved up the road with his scout car and into the fields on his left with his ersatz White Scout Car (because I left the scout cars at home with my US stuff). I had an SdKfz 250/9 and and SdKfz 251 with a 4 man recce team.

There's the ersatz scout car in the right background.

The recce game played out. The Daimler scout car moved up and I moved up my little halftrack but the Daimler was on a reserve move and managed to escape before I got a shot off. The Ersatz White came up and managed to pin my armoured car with it's .50 cal MG.

But my halftrack came up the flank but coudn't pin the Daimler... And so it went... Cat and mouse.

But from somewhere a shot rang out and my 250/9 took a direct hit (Robin pulled a Mine Strike chit & rolled a 6) which destroyed the little armoured car. My recce team entered one of the buildings. They took a casualty and became pinned. The Ersats White then gave them a blast of heavy HG fire and after more casualties the remainder fled the field.

By this time I was already up to 3 BR chits (one for un-pinning the 205/9). I had to pull another chit to un-pin my 251 and that was chit #4. And it was an Air Strike. A FW-190 appeared in the sky and the following turn it dropped a large bomb. 11 Dice rained death and 9 dice hit the only target in range after the bomb scattered - The Daimler.

The Ersatz White then passed by my destroyed armoured car and took off up the road and out of harms way before the main German force arrived.

It was a long Recce phase and I lost it. So I pulled another chit - 5 of them so far - and I wasn't looking healthy. But now the Brit main force was arriving with their armour leading.

My plan was simple. I'd move up the center and get some troops into the farm house & the center house at the cross road and try to get around the left.

This worked out pretty well. I had to move one of my StuG's up the road and hope that it didn't get brewed up. It did take one hit but it failed to penetrate. On the next turn it took aim at a Cromwell facing it and destroyed it. On my right, another StuG crested a small hill and Robin's Firefly, which was on Ambush Fire took aim and... The first shot he failed to observe... But the second shot was good and the Firefly crew hit the StuG fair and square. But the frontal armour of the panzer managed to deflect the shot and the StuG survived. It's own retaliatory shot missed.

The truck mounted platoon that I sent on the left took full fire from a Brit section which destroyed the vehicle and inflicted two casualties on the infantry. Luckily they weren't pinned.
I called in the Focker again but the Ersats White was on Ambush Fire and managed to pin it and chase it off for the time being.

The SdKfz 251 started laying fire onto enemy infantry in the buildings but soon had the problem of a Cromwell cresting a hill and taking aim. An armour penetrating shot banged overhead but missed.

My infantry command disembarked from their vehicle and the Lt sent a panzerschrek team forward to deal with the Cromwell. They needed 2+ to hit. They rolled 1. Luckily I had given them an Open Fire order so they got a second chance. And they made it count. KA-BOOM went the Cromwell.

Well done Obergrenadier Wenke!

This attracted fire from the infantry in the houses and they took aim at the command section which took casualties and became pinned. Not happy with this Robin sent an M5 up the hill to deal more harshly with the command section: They moved up, took aim, fired and killed an NCO. The resulting morale test caused a Beyond the Call of Duty test. Which was passed.

 Obergrenadier Wenke was loaded - He took aim. He shot...

And that's how Obergrenadier Helmut Wenke won the Iron Cross - Second Class!

Meanwhile on the rest of the battlefield:

I'd been trying to get my off-board mortars to drop a stonk but my comms kept failing. They finally got through but the stonk scattered wildly and did nothing except pin a Dingo command car.

The Firefly managed to get on target and took out the StuG that it was dueling with on my right.
My infantry managed to rout one of the enemy infantry sections in the houses but a rifle team got caught flat footed in the open and were wiped out (it wasn't until I was driving home that I remembered the Fall Back rule - Oh well).

I was holding on but not by much - Those chits during the recce phase had been harsh (16 off my BR of 29). Anyway I decided to bring my third StuG forward to try and take out the Firefly. I couldn't move up the road because there were two PIAT's hiding. I decided to draw a chit to bring the FW-190 back into play. Lucky the chit I pulled was a 1. I still had 5 BR remaining.

So it was two Stug's facing off against the lone Firefly. British turn - Robin decided to Open Fire with the Firefly. One shot at each StuG. First shot against the one on the right - An open clear shot - He failed to observe.

Shot #2 against the obscured StuG on the road - They saw it - They hit it - The shot penetrated and blew the crap out of it.

I pulled a BR Chit... 5.
My Battle Rating was down to 0. Time to call the retreat.

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Conclusion:

It was a great game. It had plenty of twists and turns. Some drama, some great high points and some lows. Everything that you could ask for in a game. The Firefly saved the day but should have been a gonner. It was sitting in the middle of a field with no cover and was an absolute sitting duck. But I missed and it didn't.

The panzerschreck was undoubtedly my shining light. This team did go beyond the call of duty.

Robin really enjoyed the game and pretty much got the hang of it by the end. I'm sure another read through the rules after playing will really clear things up for him. I'm sure we still made mistakes but only more games will iron those out.

And here's some pics that I stole from Russell.

 A carrier section move up in support.

 The first victim of the Firefly.

That one!