'O' Group and a Big Re-Basing Project

 

Because I haven't posted on this blog for a while, I initially posted this article on my main blog at: This 28m Life and I'm cross posting it here to get this blog up and happening again.

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I've been looking forward for the release of the new WWII rules: 'O' Group. After playing a lot of Chain of Command in 2019, I sort of lost interest in it. Whilst I do like the game I think it's a bit small scale. For a platoon level game I actually prefer Battlegroup & one of the main reasons is: because I can get to use more of the models and figures I paint. CoC doesn't allow for this.

So I've been keen for the release of 'O' Group to get some games of larger actions happening where I can use plenty of the models I have. However, I need to rebase my figures because individual figures are not going to work for these rules. I'm quite happy with this even if it is a bit of a pain in the bum. I can still use the multi based figures for Battlegroup and maybe CoC if needs be. 

I started with my 1943 / '45 Brits because they are the most complete force that I own. With just a little bit a substituting one or two figures here and there I can field a complete battalion with heavy weapons, mortars, anti-tank, engineers etc. I also have enough models to field most of the armoured support and recce that I'll need to start with. Here is the completed battalion.

I have a bag full of these little mdf 12mm dice holders left over from another project a few years back. I added one to the BHQ base to hold a dice for the Battalion Orders. I like it and I'll do the same for all the other BHQ bases.

I'm now on to some Germans. I had forgotten what troops I had so I had to go through them. As it is, the Germans I have are far more fragmented. I thought I had a full infantry company but I don't. What I have is:

    2 x 1943 - '45 platoons with lots of odds & ends for support, 

    1 x early war platoon, 

    2.5 platoons of Hermann Goering Division organized as panzer-grenadiers, plus a section of assault pioneers (these will become a platoon),

    2+ platoons of Fallschirmjager in Mediterranean kit, and

    1 section of early war Fallschirmjager.

As I said... They're fragmented. So they're going to need a bit of work to bring them up to scratch. Each platoon will convert to 1 company so, for instance: I've decided to concentrate on the Hermann Goering's because they're the closest to a complete 3 company battalion and I can also sub them for regular troops if I need to. (The pic above are actually the regular infantry/grenadiers/schutzen).

P.S. A big Thank You to Viv at Knights of Dice for cutting the mdf bases for me. I decided on an odd base size (50mm x 30mm) and KoD came to the rescue for me.

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!

El Adem Road - April 1941

Today was the day my North African kit got deployed onto the table for the first time in a cracking game of Battlegroup. The scenario was set on 10 April - The day before the first attacks against the Tobruk garrison historically took place on Good Friday, 11 Apr 1941. The El Adem Road runs south-west from he most southern point of the perimeter.

This was a delaying action along the El Adem Road with 2/17 Battalion - 20 Brigade of the 2nd AIF fighting for time against 5th Panzer Regiment, 5 Light Div -Deutsches Afrikakorps (DAK). The Aussie's mission was to stall the DAK for 12 turns to allow time for the preparation of the defences.

I was in command of the Aussies and my opponent was Pete - AKA, Oberst Jenkers was in charge of the German forces. I had a platoon of infantry with support from a pair of guns from 1RHA and a mobile reaction force consisting of  a carrier section & a troop of Matilda II tanks from C Squadron, "Tobruk Tanks."
Oberst Jenkers, had a reinforced schutzen platoon (4 sections) with pioneer support, a troop of Pz II's, another of Pz III's and a strong recce element with a motorcycle patrol and SdKfz 222.

Aussie Defences:

My troops started with the infantry, guns and supports on the table in prepared positions. On turn 4, I would roll 1d6 to see how many turns the reaction force would arrive. The second line of dugouts (in the pic) are actually on a low ridge which is difficult to see. There is a large cactus patch in the center and a minefield on my right flank. I had two section in the center and the third in the stony area overlooking the minefield. There is a 2pdr AT gun on my extreme left and two 25pdrs on my right. I have a mortar pit in the center.

 A wrecked AT gun to make the barren desert look a bit more interesting.

 The initial DAK deployment. Recce, Pz II troop and HQ elements.

 Here they come, stirring up the dust.

Initial Moves:

The Pz II's moved forward. In the center the motorcycle patrol moved up and deployed in the cactus patch. An Sdkfz 222 moved up on my left flank. The first shots rang out and it was my 2pdr AT gun which fired at the 222. Its first shot missed but the second hit but only managed a glancing hit. Mortar fire hit the motorcycles in the cactus and pinned one team.

My Morris armoured car ten moved forward in the center followed by a Daimler Dingo.  My 2pdr portee raced over the ridge to take a shot at a PzII and missed.

The panzers continued their advance. The SdKfz 222 replied to the 2pdr and opened up with it's 20mm auto-cannon to devastating effect. Two of the gun crew were killed (failed their hard cover saves) and the remaining man abandoned the gun when he became pinned (last man standing rule). In front of the minefield the schutzen platoon moved up, disembarked from their trucks and deployed in the dust. 

I'd lost the AT gun but my defence was still looking okay. Now the RHA guns took aim at the PzII's out front and, over open sights, managed to take one of the tanks out of the picture. Well done!

 I moved the destroyed 2pdr terrain piece into the gun pit because the gun

model has the crew attached to the base. It's looks better this way too.

At this time Oberst Jenkers stopped the advance of his panzers, took proper aim and dealt out some serious damage to my defence. I lost my 2pdr portee and Morris A/C to the Sdkfz 222 and one of the panzers. The other tank attempted to shoot up the 25 pdrs and did cause some casualties but failed to pin the gun. A 80mm mortar targeted my central section and inflicted some casualties and also pinned them. to my right the DAK pioneers moved toward the wire and the dismounted infantry started giving my forward section near the wire a lot of attention.

One of my losses resulted in my drawing a Mine Strike chit from the box. I placed this onto the assault pioneer truck. This resulted in the destruction of the truck and the two pioneers killed. Good work! My defensive actions were not having much effect. I was inflicting some damage but not enough. Likewise the Germans were not inflicting a lot of damage but what they did manage, I couldn't afford.

Turn 4 - A German pre-timed mortar barrage came in and was aimed right at the center of my defences. But luck was on the Aussie's side and the stonk went wild and landed in the cactus patch. This took out the remaining motorcycle troops. Unlucky for me, one of the chits drawn was Air Strike!

In my turn I rolled for my reinforcements - They would arrive on turn 7. In the meantime, my defensive fire was below average. The 25pdrs targeted the PzII's and infantry beyond the wire but they were having little effect. With the Pz III troop now on the table and moving forward I needed to start inflicting more damage.

Next turn the Air Strike came in and it was a Stuka. It attempted to hit my guns but the bombs drifted. Not far but far enough to save one gun. Unfortunately it wasn't so good for the infantry section in the center who took the brunt of the bombing. They were wiped out, one gun routed and my 2" mortar was pinned. All of a sudden there was a big hole in my line.

STUKA! STUKA! STUKA!

Yes, I know it's not a Stuka. But I don't own one. Yet.

All this excitement managed to blind my opponent to the movement of my Boys AT team into the front line. They took up a position and took a shot at the PzII's out front. They gained some hits but failed to do any damage. But they also survived retaliatory fire and lived to keep the fight going.

I can't say the same for my remaining 25pdr. One of the PzIII's took aim with HE and took out most of the remaining crew. It was also pinned and again, the Last Man Standing rule saw the gun abandoned.

I moved my Vickers HMG down to the front defences and maneuvered the Dingo into a defensive position in front of the minefield. More shooting and more destruction and the Boys team, with some skillful shooting managed to take out the SdKfz 222. The 222, along with the Stuka, was probably Oberst Jenker's most effective unit.

Somewhere along the way, I drew another chit and drew another Mine Strike. I played this one on a PzII and it was blown up. Good thing too. Take that, Gerry!

I stripped the infantry from the left and moved them to the center. The Bren team made it to cover but the rifle team got caught in the middle of a mortar strike. They lost some men and the resulting morale test got them a Beyond the Call of Duty activation which got the remainder into cover.

By this time the German pioneers had advanced to the wire and cleared a path through the minefield. They'd taken a pounding on their way in but were still able to do their job with only four of them still standing.

Somewhere, somehow, the last PzII bit the dust. I have a feeling it was the Boys ATR again but I can't remember. The Dingo and Vickers managed to slow down the schutzen advancing though the minefield, but it was time for the infantry to pull back. They'd done all they could to stall the DAK and now the armour would have to do some of the work.

 Then the cavalry arrived. The tanks of C Squadron arrived on the field.

Retreat!

At this time we called the game (turn 8) as it was getting late in the day. The Aussies had limited success but they didn't manage to stop the DAK to any great extent. They did manage to destroy one armoured unit and all the recce support and I'm pretty sure the Matilda's would be able to hold off the panzers until turn 12.

As far as Battle Ratings were concerned, neither side was close to breaking. I was on 16 out of 43 BR and Pete was on a bit more but he had 53 BR. Admittedly I did draw two 1's and two Mine Strikes. If I'd been less lucky I could have easily added to an additional 10 or more to my BR loss.

Conclusion:

It was an interesting and different game. It's been a long, longtime since I last played a Western Desert game (and we're taking early 1980's here!) so I wasn't sure how to go about it. But, for a first I think it worked out well. The battle was, of course fictitious, but it fitted well within a general concept. However, I did forget to pack the El Adem Road in with my terrain so we didn't have an actual road! Never mind.

As for the rules, I got a bit lost with the Air Strike as I've never done this before. I'm certain I got it some of it wrong. It worked out okay but I'll have to read up on it and get it right next time. But... And this is a big but... I got to put an aircraft on the table. Not the right one because I don't own a Stuka, but an aircraft nonetheless. And that, my friend overrides anything else as far as I'm concerned because image is 90% the game and it looked good!

I also got to use a whole bunch of other things that I've been making, such as the sandbag emplacements, cacti and barbed wire. I also got to use my newly made desert mat. It still smells a bit like coffee but that will fade in time. At least it's an appetizing smell.

EDIT:
And once again after I've finished this and published I found some much better pics courtesy of Russel at NWA. A man who takes much better photo's that I can attempt.

 My new DAK command. I finished this the Friday night before Saturday's battle.

 The Stuka attack I

 The Stuka attack II