The fifth game ended with a close British Victory!

Scenario

Kampfgruppe Von Luck has taken the Bas de Rainville, and is aiming to turn west towards the last defences before the Orne bridges. A force of British Paratroopers holds some key ground on the flank, so a platoon is dispatched to attack it. Unknown to the Germans, 13 Para is holding the church, not 12 Para who is now falling back and hoping to dig in at a chateau to the west.

Once this objective is taken, Von Luck only has to take the Chateau to put the Orne bridges under fire.

Terrain

The church is surrounded by a low stone wall, with some hedges to one side. Some houses are on the far side of the objective. The Germans advance up a sunken road, with only some hedges to provide cover/base of fire for their advance.

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Forces

The Para platoon in this game is from 13 Para, so is at full strength with a robust Platoon HQ (2″ mortar, sniper, PIAT team, Pl Sgt), 2 sections, each with a Bren team and a rifle team, as well as a section with 2 Brens and a sniper. With 3 support points and a free entrenchment, the Paras went with 4 entrenchments to hold the line.

The Germans brought up 2nd Platoon. It was down 2 men, so deployed without a panzershrek team. With 14 support points, I took a Forward Observer, a Lorraine Schlepper, and a sniper.

Note that I had decided to fold 1st platoon after the last game. The loss of 2 leaders when reinforcements weren’t available made me pause. I could use the remaining men of 1st platoon to allocate to 2nd and 3rd platoon, and now had 2 extra junior leaders to plug gaps.

The Plan

I wanted to keep pressure across the field, push up using a firebase in the hedgeline (potentially on overwatch) and mortar fire centred on the church until I was at the walls of the church yard. I would then try to pin down any units and force my way to one JOP on a flank with a view to ending the fight due to Force Morale. 13 Para’s platoon has no part in the fight after this and I knew that Lucius would be willing to take heavy casualties so victory would likely hinge on lowering the Para Force Morale. The sniper was to add shock and see if I couldn’t take out his leadership to further impact his morale. I hadn’t done any detail planning though, or wargaming of the options that Lucius might consider. This was my first mistake – I didn’t do proper battle procedure and so was less reactive than I should’ve been and really didn’t think he’d hold on my left.

The Fight

This was one of, if not the most fun games of Chain of Command we’ve played. It went on well past midnight and took 84 phases to complete. No, I’m not going to go on listing each set of rolls. This AAR will be more narrative in form and will include what the dice said at key times.

The Patrol Phase went well – but with the terrain, there weren’t many options so there were no surprises. I noticed that the church yard was not going to be the centre of his defence. My initial plan could still work, so I didn’t change my approach. Sadly, many of my pictures didn’t turn out, so I’m going to use the map from the scenario to show where our Jumping Off Points (JOPs) started:

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Para Force Morale started at 11, as did the Germans. Clearly 13 Para was eager to fight, and the Kampfgruppe was feeling good about seeing off 12 Para yet again!

The first roll of the game was mine, with a 6,5,5,5,5! Not much to do but record the first points towards the many Chain of Command Dice we got in the game. Lucius followed up with a three back-to-back phases of waiting (two double phases) before I brought 1st Squad on at the hedge line and racked up my first Chain of Command Die. For those not familiar with them, a Chain of Command Die allows you certain actions, like interrupting an opponent’s phase, moving a jumping off point, avoiding a Force Morale test, or moving a sniper (all of which happened in this game).

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The next phases saw little action, just more 5s rolled as I brought a Forward Observer on and contacted the battery. My first ranging shot was 24″ off though, and landed right in front of my 1st Squad! Luckily I was able to correct and brought 2nd Squad on.

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Lucius then rolled 6,6,6,3,2, which ended the turn. I decided not to use my Chain of Command Die to keep the FO in contact with the battery as I wanted more flexibility in its use (as we normally so rarely see them). I figured I had an even chance of getting a hold of the battery again and that I could still easily win by concentrating firepower (which included a Lorraine Schlepper). That was my second mistake.

A Para sniper appeared on the house across from the hedge row and put some shock on 1st Squad, so on my phase, I put 1st Squad on overwatch, brought 2nd Squad up and gave the order for the Lorraine Schlepper to arrive.

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The sniper tried again on the next phase but my men saw him and killed him with their return fire. Para Force Morale drops 1 to 10. So far, so good.

Lucius then got the first his first of 7 Chain of Command Dice for the evening. I attempted to contact the battery but it wasn’t available for me in my phase. My next phase I tried again but to no avail, so I brought my sniper and pushed up, again getting no mortar support.

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As I advanced 2nd Squad to the churchyard (and Lucius kept rolling 5s) I learned that the battery was not going to be available to answer my call for fire.

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Drat. I did have several Chain of Command Dice though, and decided that without mortars, I should assault the JOP on my right flank. This was yet another mistake. Any assault there would be hard to support, and would require armour to leave the safety of the sunken road. I should have kept with my plan and pushed up on my left. Regardless, I shifted my JOP and deployed 3rd Squad to advance to the hedgerow on my right flank.

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Thinking that the Para JOP on my right was exposed, I decided that 3rd Squad could put pressure on that side, and maybe I could still push up on my left. I brought my Senior Leader on with 1st Squad, and slowly pushed up 3rd squad to the hedge row on my right.

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The Para 2″ mortar showed up as I advanced slowly, dropping smoke in front of the Lorraine Schlepper. It didn’t really trouble me as I moved it towards my right.

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Then 3 Section appeared, in entrenchments, just 6″ from the hedgerow. They opened fire at close range and somehow only put shock on the very surprised 3rd Squad. We weren’t sure if an interrupt would allow me to fire before 3 Section, as the Paras would’ve been effectively hiding in the trenches until my Germans showed up. So, in the spirit of friendly gaming, we rolled a die. I wasn’t able to interrupt. Fair enough!

I replied with 3rd Squad, but again, only managed shock. I had 2nd Squad jump the churchyard wall, thinking to have them flank 3rd Squad, and advanced the Lorraine Schlepper, which moved about as fast as it sounds it should.

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I then played one of my Chain of Command dice to interrupt. I managed to put 2 kills on the Para 3 Section, before he replied with a double phase of firing, killing 2 of my men, and wounding the unpopular junior leader (my Force Morale remained intact). The next phase I used another interrupt and pulled 3rd Squad back. 6″ away from elite troops in hard cover (who had 2 Bren guns and 3 SMGs) was not a place to be in light cover. The 2″ mortar dropped some smoke, attempting to hinder the Lorraine Schlepper.

Now what to do? Without 3rd Squad fixing them from the front, 2nd Squad would be isolated and hurt. I decided to push towards the far end of the church yard and managed to sprint there with most of my men making it to the wall.

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Then 1 Section appeared in trenches to my front and fired at me, killing a riflemen. My next phase wasn’t much help, with a roll of 6,5,5,4,4. My senior leader was too far away, and in my indecision, I didn’t want to push 1st Squad up, in case the last Para section was in the house facing me.

Lucius then got his 4th Chain of Command die and had 1st Section kill another of my 2nd Squad. The turn ended on my phase, and my 2nd Squad returned the favour, killing 2 of the Paras in their holes. I put 3rd Squad on overwatch on my right, hoping to discourage any counter-attacks on my right. I then advanced 1st Squad up on my left.

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Lucius put on his 2nd sniper, who winged my Senior Leader, dropping my Force Morale down to 10, and reducing his command initiatives. Luckily, 1 Section was having no luck at firing at my boys in the churchyard.

I put my sniper on counter-sniper duty, advanced another bound with 1st Squad, and had 2nd Squad fire again. They killed 3 men, including the Junior Leader of 1st Section, but yet another Chain of Command Die was spent, and no Force Morale test was taken.

Lucius then rolled this:

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I mean, come on! The result was turn end, my troops coming off overwatch, an additional Chain of Command Die for him, and his men finding booze, bringing his Force Morale back up to 11. This wasn’t going well for me.

That was followed by a roll of 6,6,4,4,2. The Paras are able to use 4s to activate their Junior Leaders, and 1 Section was ordered to fire, but thankfully to no effect, but the PIAT did come on to ambush my Lorraine Schlepper immobolizing it! Great. That weapon system is no effectively useless on my right. It should stop him from trying to take the hedge on my right, but I’m the one who is supposed to be attacking here.

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1 Section killed another man in the churchyard, and the Platoon Sgt came on to direct the 2″ to add smoke near the immobilised Lorraine Schlepper.

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I continued to push up on my left, and managed to kill 2 more Paras in the street and adding enough shock to pin 1 Section. That was more like it.

Lucius had 1 Section fire what it could, but then I got my long-awaited double phase. Without mobility, the Lorraine Schlepper wasn’t going to help me on my right. Instead, I moved my sniper up, added shock and then killed a man in 1 Section, breaking them! Once again, no Force Morale test, but the remaining men fell back to the table edge. Victory seemed possible again, even if the Force Morale ratings (11 for the Paras, 10 for me) indicated an elimination game. I pushed 2nd Squad forward, hoping to grab the JOP near the Platoon Sgt. I got within 4″ but not close enough to do more.

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On his turn (another turn end/double phase for Lucius), he dropped 2 Section on the table on my right, just inside the churchyard! They hit the strung-out 2nd Squad, killed the assistant MG 42 gunner in the closer team and wounded my Junior Leader. My Force Morale drops to 8. I play an interrupt on the next phase, and my MG gunner killed one para, turning the squad to face the enemy just as they launched into close combat. I killed 4 men, but the Para Junior Leader wasn’t among them. My squad was wiped out and my Force Morale dropped to 6. My thoughts of victory were slipping away. My support options were already on the table. The FO was useless, as was the Lorraine Schlepper. I had lost a squad in exchange for a section, but my Force Morale was almost half of that of my opponent.

I moved 3rd Squad away from the hedgerow and back toward the JOP on my right. If I withdrew, I wanted them closer to the JOP. 1st Squad moved to the churchyard wall got a few shots on 2 Section in the open in the yard, killing a man.

Lucius then racked up another Chain of Command Die and moved 2 Section behind the Church, out of my line of fire.

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I now had 2 Para sections on the table on my right. 2 JOPS unguarded on my left, with the Pl Sgt and 2″ mortar there as well (though behind light cover). I decided to go for the JOPs in an attempt to force Lucius to use some of his Chain of Command Dice so when the final firefights were happening I could have a chance at knocking his Force Morale down.

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3 Section then doubled back towards the Platoon Sgt. I didn’t want to get caught by them in the open, and rushed 1st Squad around the other side of the house that the Pl Sgt was hiding behind and got a double phase. 1st Squad jumped the hedge and killed the 2″ team and Platoon Sgt. Lucius avoided one Force Morale test, but the other brought his morale down to 10. Victory may be possible if I play this right after all!

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On his next phase, Lucius brought 3 Section back to my right, and 2 Section started a rush on my left, seemingly aiming for the JOP on that side. My 1st Squad was nearly at his baseline so very far away, and my 3rd Squad was nearly facing off against his 3 Section. This was not good.

I managed to park troops near the Para JOP on my far left, but then Lucius rolled another turn end! He got 2 Section over the wall and rushing down my left flank. I used my a Chain of Command Die to order 3rd Squad, out in the open near the JOP on my right, to interrupt his movement and kill 3 men, wiping out a team and pinning the section. Again, another Force Morale test was avoided thanks to the Chain of Command Die. Still, that threat on my left had been held.

I rolled a double phase next, and wiped out the Bren team, my sniper taking out the Junior Leader. The Force Morale rolls were terrible for the Paras, and their Force Morale plummeted to 5. I may have a good chance to win here after all! 2 mostly complete squads against a Para section? I thought “I can do that.”

Lucius replied by bringing on the PIAT again, adding enough shock onto the Lorraine Schlepper that the crew fled, dropping my Force Morale to 5 as well. 3 Section seemed to be aiming for the churchyard wall near my abandoned armour. From there, they could see my JOPs and my 3rd Squad sitting in the open.

I needed to get 3 Section engaged soon. I divided 1st Squad, leaving a team to sit on the JOP, while another moved to engage 3 Section. I managed a kill, but that is not nearly enough. Selection and maintenance of the aim was lost here – I should’ve dropped the idea of the JOPs and done everything I could to win the firefight.

I saw the churchyard wall and dithered with 3rd Squad, putting them on overwatch rather than rushing forward. It was a missed opportunity.

3 Section on their phase rallied off shock and went tactical, taking fire from their rear (the one MG team from 1st Squad). I decided to end the turn and remove the JOP at this time. I figured that I would eliminate Lucius’ last Chain of Command Die, which would in turn reduce his flexibility. Using my only Chain of Command Die to do so unfortunately meant I was also reducing my options. As expected, the loss of the JOP wasn’t rolled for as the Chain of Command Die was expended. I then realized that the stone wall of the churchyard is key and rush 3rd Squad up. My die roll fell short.

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Lucius then got a double phase. He rushed to the churchyard wall. I had no dice to interrupt him and take the wall first. Drat. On his next phase got ANOTHER Chain of Command Die. He fired 24 dice at close range in the open, scoring 13 hits. My Force Morale dropped below 3, so my men withdrew, leaving 13 Para victorious in the field.

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Aftermath

Wow. That was a long but very fun game that could’ve gone either way several times. My lack of luck with the gunners continues its run! I think my choice to not use a Chain of Command die to keep contact with the barrage was the biggest of my mistakes. With it, I could’ve locked down the JOP on my right and then focused on advancing to my left with a good base of fire and lots of cover closer to the houses, which was closer to my original plan.

Unlike his typical defence, Lucius was patient. He waited for my attack to develop and then deployed to stop threats, keeping a section in reserve. I had really expected that all of his sections would be on when I was working my way up the centre, but his choice to keep in his pocket was the correct one and by wiping out my 2nd Squad, really turned the tide. The entrenchments behind the hedge really made it impossible to assault without overwhelming force, and my support choices simply didn’t support pushing forward on that side. My slow attack allowed him to dictate the fight. His movement towards my left late in the game gave me to opportunity to even the field, but I failed to focus on wiping out 3 Section, and Lucius saw the vulnerability in 3rd Squad and the Paras ran that much faster to the wall.

13 Para has the initiative now and is choosing to counter-attack for the next game. This gives them 10 support points against my 19 points and a fresh platoon (3rd Platoon has yet to see action). Regardless of the outcome, being rocked back on my heels buys the Paras time. I will need to hold the field next game, finally take the Church the game after that, and then overrun the chateau in my first attempt if I’m going to take the Orne bridges. That’s a steep hill to climb. I’m fairly confident I can hold 13 Para’s push into the Bas de Rainville, and take the church the turn after. The chateau though, will have 3 free entrenchments, which will give Lucius a lot more flexibility in his defence and I’ll have only 1 attempt to take it before the next phase of the landings arrive and 12 Para is reinforced.

German Situation

The difference in Force Morale favours the Para this time. 2nd Platoon lost 20 men, which translates to 10 gone for good, 5 at the aid station ready for the next time 2nd Platoon is called on, and 5 ready for action immediately. This fight effectively cut my Platoon in half.

Von Luck is not happy, and I lose the extra support point next game. The men are also less enthused their opinion drops by 3 points. I still have a bonus to Force Morale rolls (now a +1 though), which is useful when facing elites.

British Situation

13 Para had 23 casualties, but with the difference in Force Morale that equates to 18. That means 9 gone for good, 4 missing Game 6, and 4 returning for it. 13 Para’s platoon will then be going into action minus 13 men. 13 Para’s CO is impressed, but despite the victory, the men are unmoved due to the heavy losses and the death of their platoon sergeant.