Enter Rommel

[Dog Soldier]

Situation at the end of Allied turn 4 (below)
North map.


I have a big success at my main defensive position (oval), the Axis assault fails and I hold onto the hex between the minefields this turn, as engineers start to clear the southern minefield I am forced to move my Free French company to block the exit from this hex, my gamble to ignore the coast route has paid off as my opponent shows no sign of using that approach, I also reposition my recon units to a inner line of defence.

South map.


I now discover why the attack down the main road has been weaker than I expected, a large force of Axis units appears to the south of my position surrounding the Bir es Suera oasis, but do these units have time to take the oasis and bring their weight to bear on my main position on the coast road?

[Dog Soldier]

German turn five.
14:00 PM March 31, 1941
Normal Conditions
Visibility 3km.




Fifth Light Division
Major Dossler did not like the visit from the General. Push them harder. “We must break through.” the general told him. “Rommel will be coming to check your progress.” While the German assaults did force the British out of their positions, no decisive penetrations were made. The 1 MG 8 battalion was disrupted in the last assault. If they do not rally quickly, it may not be possible to secure the orchard at coordinates (33,8) on the map. Time is certainly running out.

Dog Soldier’s notes
Who would have known that the British would retire all their long range armored cars on the southern front to the coast? I really thought there would be some that moved west from their start positions. Then they would harass the Axis rear of any southern force. My blocking troops south west of the Fifth Light Division are wasted.


Fifth Light positions along the coast on German turn five. Armor is on the objective.

Infantry Regiment 200
Lieutenant Gruber pushed ahead to the corner of the marshes. No sign of the British here as his scout cars crested the hill. Not even a delaying action. Where are the British? It was too good to hope the enemy had abandoned Bir el Ginn. It now seemed possible the British had not been expecting this maneuver. The short delay at 10:00 hours may have thrown them off. “Will it be a race then to the objective?” thought Gruber. The next two hours drive would tell.
The assault on Bir es Suera went well. All the enemy AT guns were destroyed along with most of the armored cars. The objective will be easily taken as the British are mopped up. The troops not engaged in mopping up will move with all speed to join the rest of the group.


Axis troops ‘turn the corner” unopposed on turn five in the south.

[Dog Soldier]

Situation at the end of Allied turn 5 (below)
North map.


Desperate fighting still rages on the main road (red oval) in which I lose several men and a tank, I also lose one hex but all in all not a bad move for me again as my opponent is still two hex’s away from the 40 point VP location into which I throw my last reserve in the form of a HQ unit, with only two moves left, can I hold on??
Around the Bir el Ginn oasis (blue oval) I have thrown out a recce screen to cover the position as I can see dust thrown up by Axis units to the south.

South map.


The assault on Bir es Suera oasis costs me three 2pdr AT guns and a recce a/c, but the resistance here is slowing the Axis advance and tying down units my opponent needs further north, loss of this position is inevitable.
At this point in the game my opponent has 63 victory points and he requires 91 for a draw and 125 for a minor victory, with 65 points within his reach either result is possible.

[Dog Soldier]

German turn six.
16:00 PM March 31, 1941
Normal Conditions
Visibility 3km.




Fifth Light Division
General Striech was as frustrated as Major Dossler. No progress at all. The assaults cause nothing but minor casualties. Splitting the Axis command may have been a mistake. Dossler just can not make any progress forward in the narrow confines.


Axis positions along the coast on turn six.

Infantry Regiment 200
While the British armored cars at Bir es Suera died well, the remainder of the regiment prepared to close on Bir el Ginn. Can they take the objective? Gruber’s scout cars maybe walking into a trap, but they found a hole in the British screen and surrounded the enemy on the eastern flank of the objective. The assault soon to follow would decide the outcome.


Axis positions east of the marshes on turn six.

Dog Soldier’s notes
It will now come down to the last turn attack on the 25 point objective at Bir el Ginn. If I can take it, I will have a draw. I have chosen to isolate as many British units as possible while leaving them a chance to escape north if they choose. If they try to escape, then the objective will fall easily and I can press the retreating units and destroy them for more victory points. In any case many of the British will be one more morale level lower from isolation next turn.
The attack up the coast ran out of gas with the disruption of the MG battalion. The British are not being fancy, They stuffed the hexes between the Germans and the 40 point objective with units. It may be impossible to plough through them all in only one turn. I am hoarding the air strikes for this final turn.
The only good thing, is the lack of British counter attack potential.

[Dog Soldier]

Situation at the end of Allied turn 6 (below).


For another two hours the fighting rages along the main road (red oval), a mortar unit and my two remaining A13 tanks desperately hold their ground against repeated Axis assaults, behind them a MG company has a chance to un-disrupt and I withdraw my Free French company one hex to a better position, I now feel confident that I can now hold the road for the one remaining move.
Over to the east the Axis forces surround the Bir el Ginn oasis (blue oval) isolating its defenders, I rush units into defensive positions I have to hope these forces can hold on for one more move!
As predicted, I lose the Bir es Suera oasis (off map to the south) and the 10 victory points it was worth.
The victory point total is now 78 with 13 points needed for a draw and 25 still on offer, will it be a draw or a Allied minor victory?

[Dog Soldier]

German turn seven.
16:00 PM March 31, 1941
Normal Conditions, Dusk
Visibility 1km.





Fifth Light Division
Major Dossler knew there was little or no hope of success, but he pushed on. As the darkness grew the German assaults gained only little ground. Two of them failed completely. The panzer jagers succeeded in breaking out of the salt marshes and advancing to the outskirts of Gasr el Brega. They encountered an armored car screen there. They did not have enough strength to try and break into the village.



Infantry Regiment 200
Lieutenant Gruber watched for secondary explosions to indicate success by the dive bombers. The British had rushed vehicles into Bir el Ginn in an attempt to hold the position. The PZMkIIIg’s had destroyed a few of the enemy vehicles as they entered the area. Now that the bombers job was complete and it was his turn. Gruber had planned the assault quickly. There would be five waves of assault to expel the British from the objective. Gruber hoped one of the first three would be successful so the forces assigned to the final two could either complete the destruction of the British forces or exploit gaps that were sure to be there north of the objective to threaten the coastal defenders from the rear.

The panzers were the first to assault. While they were unable to clear the British off the objective, the panzers destroyed numerous vehicles including all the enemy tanks. They created much confusion among the remaining defenders before they withdrew to their start positions. Next the Germans armored cars went in. They were also able to destroy some of the enemy vehicles, but took losses of their own. Two companies of the MG battalion attacked mounted next. They further disrupted the enemy defenses. Finally the recon company made a mounted assault and cleared the remaining British defenders, destroying more enemy vehicles.

Lieutenant Gruber then deployed his remaining forces to cut off the surviving British and protect his flanks from any possible counterattack. It did not seem likely the British will try to retake the objective. Gruber was not going to take any chances.



German positions in the east after the Axis half of turn seven.


Dog Soldier’s notes
Well, it took me most of the game to realize just how vulnerable to assault the British armored cars are. I really expected some of them to be a nuisance to my drive in the south. As it turned out, that was not how they were used. Artillery and air strikes seemed less effective than I expected. I would say the lessons learned here are:
• Be very aggressive as the Germans. The British can do little to hurt you.
• Assault, assault and assault.
I think I have a solid draw. I doubt there is much Foul can do in his turn.

[Dog Soldier]

Situation at the end of Allied turn 7 (below) and end of game.


The last turn has a dramatic climax, a last ditch Axis assault on the Bir el Ginn oasis (blue oval) is successful and gives the Axis the 13+ points they needed for a draw!
I retreat my surviving recce units north to lick their wounds, while on the main road the Axis achieve a slight breakthrough isolating the Allied units on the coast, but they have run out of time to take advantage of this.

Conclusion
I felt my defense was solid and it was only the last gasp loss of the VP hex that snatched victory away from me, I thought my opponent played a great game, but possibly the sending of so many units to the south of the marsh prevented him from achieving a victory? Only further games of this scenario would prove that theory as in fact there are four clear attacking strategies for this little game.
This was a really fun scenario that went right to the wire just as any H2H scenario should do, if this AAR has whetted your appetite for a H2H scenario, why not check out the list of other scenarios available for download there?

[Dog Soldier]

Epilogue




The move to the south was a good move. I was overly concerned with the idea of British armored cars striking my troops in travel mode and then using their high movement points, running just out of LOS. I would never have enough units to go chasing them down. I thought these “Desert Rats” could be directing air strikes at my columns. It appears my fears were unjustified. Foul was purely defensive the entire game. I should have left the infantry in travel mode and rode hard and fast around the southeast “corner” of the marshes. This would have placed Foul on the horns of a dilemma. He would have had to choose how much force to send south to meet the threat at the risk of weakening the defense along the coast road. I think in any case the Germans have to at least feint this direction and hope to draw off some of the British defense along the coast. An option to this would be to remove the mines along the track leading into the marshes at the center of the map. An attack up this track could easily push the armored cars out of any blocking position. From such a central position the Germans could then strike at the 25 point victory hex at Bir el Ginn or strike north into the short two hex neck of the marshes at (33,11) and (34,11). In any case a drive around the marshes as I did should only reveal as few units as necessary to take the 10 victory point southern most objective, while keeping the rest of the force hidden. In this way the British will not be sure if this is a real drive or just a feint.


Final positions after the end of the game.

Foul made very good use of the terrain along the narrow coast road to hold the Germans short of the 40 point victory hex. He played a very good game as an example of a delaying action in Tobruk 41.