#01a :Enter Rommel (H2H)

[Mr Grumpy]

#01a :Enter Rommel (H2H)

Mersa el Brega, 31 March 1941: After their glorious victory over the Italians in December 1940, the British were beset with demands for their meager resources. As troops were dispatched to other theaters, mostly to West Africa and Greece, the Western Desert was held by the green British 2nd Armoured and the under trained, and some would say misfit, 9th Australian Division. The breathing space given to the Axis was unfortunate, as Rommel would arrive in Africa on 12 February, along with the lead elements of German troops sent to support their Italian allies. By the end of March he had accumulated enough force to test the British defenses and el Agheila, the gateway to Cyrenaica, fell on 24 March without a single casualty. However, 25km to the east lay the small anchorage of Mersa el Brega and the last natural defensive position between el Agheila and el Alamein, 1000 kilometers to the east. It was here, amongst the salt marshes, that the British 2nd Armoured Division decided to make its stand, and to give the German 5th Light Division their first set piece battle of the Africa Campaign. The main action was fought in the area of the coast road, where the Support Group repulsed repeated German attacks, giving them their first taste of concentrated 25-pounder fire. In the late afternoon, German infantry infiltrated among the coastal sand dunes and, finally, turned the British infantry out of their positions. Ordered not to squander the paltry strength of the British armor, made up of various derelict cruiser and captured Italian tanks, General Gambier-Perry refused to counter-attack with the 3rd Armoured Brigade, and the Division abandoned the position during the night. Rommel then began his famous cross-desert move and the running of the "Benghazi Handicap", the race to evacuate the 9th Australian Division from the Benghazi area before the Germans could cut-off their retreat, had started.
*Edited by Foul for H2H balance, default rules + recon spotting should be used*

Designer Foul.,Size: small, Length: 7 turns.

Designer notes
Version 1.3
This is a small fun scenario, covering Rommels first major attack in the Western Desert theatre, I have only had to make some small changes from the original stock scenario just to ensure a more balanced encounter.
Units
No unit values have been changed, but the scenario is one turn longer.
Map
I have increased the value of the VP hex’s around Cemetery Hill (CH) and added a small Allied supply source to reflect the fact that this was the vital point of the attack, the Allied supply source at Gasr el Brega has been reduced and the Axis supply tweaked up a little (to help avoid ammo/fuel problems).
An additional Allied supply source was added on the Northern map edge and a line of impassable hex’s South of the Axis position, this to prevent the unfortunate gamey tactic of sitting on enemy supply sources and thus isolating the other players army.
Strategy
This decision lay’s in the hands of the Axis player, in classic Rommel style he can bull rush the positions at CH or outflank the position to the North or South or try all three!!
But time is not on the Axis side, you must not waste a moment in your attack to try to force the position, risks that you would not normally take (leaving units in T mode, assaulting in T mode etc..) will need to be taken to achieve victory, the Allied player must react to the Axis moves, the position at CH must be held at all costs to guarantee a victory.
Rules
The default rules must be used, with maybe the addition of Recon spotting.
Conclusion
This is a cracking little scenario; I hope my minor makeover will add to the enjoyment of playing it!
I would like to thank Mike Bowen for his help in testing this scenario.

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