#16_14s Wacht am Rhein (Herbstnebel)

[Plain Ian]

German Turn 1 (played back in April) 

I went with the easy option and chose Hoes Venn for my landing site. The rough plan was land and start harassing the enemy artillery and luck prevailing meet up with the 326th VGD. 

So how did it go?



Well I guess it went as well as it did historically? 

7th Gruppe landed the closest to the target drop zone but unfortunately adjacent to US Engineers. It lost 1 man in the fight and I pulled it quickly back north. 

The rest of the Gruppen landed safely but were badly scattered. However I was quite happy to see that most Gruppen had suffered few losses and Fatigue was still relatively low. 

Unfortunately 8th Gruppe hadn't read the script...or maybe they had and decided to head straight towards the 326th VGD! AS the 326th VGD mounted their attack on Monschau they were surprised to hear the sound of a Ju 52 and even more surprised to see a solitary paratrooper drifting down towards them! The US troops were even more surprised as despite a hail of fire the lucky man would survive. (thank you Alt Fire) 

A hero's welcome awaits him back in Berlin!

[Plain Ian]

I'll start with the boring sector first. Monschau. 

Brian has revised this area several times. When I played it as the US players the 3/395th were beaten up quite badly and Hofen could have fallen. Monschau was a bit easier to defend as Mines and Obstacles easily delayed the attack until US artillery (V Corps) started to make a big impact.

Brian has beefed up the 395th defenses by changing TRENCHES to Pillboxes. It does help reduce losses but since the 395th is D morale it can be Disrupted if hit hard enough by heavy artillery. The Germans do have heavy artillery (VAK 405 and Werfer Rgt 88/89) but they will be withdrawn at 12:00. 

So instead of using the I/753 VG Bn and I/751 VG Bn to attack Hofen I thought it would be better to transfer the I/753 over the river to support the attack on Monschau.



And the results have been underwhelming. Not much to show for almost 200 men lost and two Pioneer companies sitting at 70% and well fatigued. (Failed assaults plus artillery) 

The attack at Hofen fizzled out. I did gain the TRENCH hex north east of Hofen but artillery soon drove me back. For some reason Brian pulled back? I've occupied the Pillbox hex with the I/751 and started patrols to see whats happening. 

Progress at Monschau has been slow. I think I've knocked out 3-5 M8's and about 10-15 men plus I have managed to inflict Disruptions. Well strictly that's not true. Most disruptions are cause not by me but by Brian as its usually US fire triggering German defensive fire which causes the disruptions. However Brian has fed in his Engineers to the town and still has a unit of Tank Destroyers in reserve.

The only success I can see is that the minefield in front of Monschau has been cleared. Again a Pioneer unit (full strength 140 men) has been chewed up to do this. 

With no heavy artillery and only Divisional artillery I'm still optomistic that I can keep pressure on Monschau. 

Hitler wanted the town but Brian hasn't given it any VP's in #16_14 so I won't be spilling to much German blood on it even if the 326th is a D rated unit. (US 38th Cav is C rated)

   
Anyway that's the picture in the north at Dusk first day.

[ComradeP]

There's no bridge across the Rur behind Höfen, so it makes sense for the Americans to pull 3/395 out of its rather precarious position as soon as possible.

The motorized elements including the HQ can withdraw through the rear area of the 2nd Infantry Division, but I'd be inclined to ferry the infantry companies across the Rur.

[Plain Ian]

There's no bridge across the Rur behind Höfen, so it makes sense for the Americans to pull 3/395 out of its rather precarious position as soon as possible.

The motorized elements including the HQ can withdraw through the rear area of the 2nd Infantry Division, but I'd be inclined to ferry the infantry companies across the Rur.

You've either got good eyesight or have played this before. <g> Yes the 3/395th are in an awkward position. I've played the first 6 turns twice as the US against Brian when the 395th had TRENCHES and it was not pretty. Two of the companies now set up in Bunkers ( I think I said Pillboxes above which is wrong) but that doesn't make it that much easier. There are no VP's to defend in Hofen plus the rest of the Division is off to the south. A player would be wise to move them south.....if he is allowed to by the German.

I dug out my Turn 1 moves.



I only sent one Pioneer company against the 3/395th. (1./326th) I held back the I/751st and ferried the I/753rd over the Rur. What Brian normally does is throw both these units at the 395th. (yellow arrows) I decided to be cute with the I/753 and keep casualties low by holding back I/751 and not sending it into Clear terrain. 

Only I/752 plus a company from II/752 sent against the hex SE of Monschau. The 2./Pio 326th moved so that they can start work on Minefield next turn.

A company of II/752 sent to reveal the troop north of Monscha for artillery purposes.

The unlucky landing of VdHydte 8 Gruppe (1 man) as you know wasn't planned. <g>

When I played the US the first thing I did was to motor the A/146th Eng down behind the 3/395th to provide back up for evacuation. The 4 foot companies.  However 3/395th are D morale so keeping them undisrupted to allow ferrying will not be easy. The best option is to sit tight probably and wait on V Corps artillery being released. Or start walking south. 

The motorised elements (HQ and two A/T units) are actually better going into T mode and running the gauntlet and crossing the bridge behind Bunker 1. Remember that in this game there are no ZOC just an enhanced cost for movement. They should be able to escape even if they start Disrupted. I think? They will suffer opportunity fire. The US foot company in Bunker 1 could even go into T mode and walk away over the bridge. 

Of course if Bunker 1 is captured or assaulted then things get ugly. Its a Bunker in Forrest. However if the US player opens his Turn 1and finds that this unit has been Disrupted he has a few decisions to make if the Germans have occupied both hexes adjacent to it and its now open to assault.

I've mentioned to Brian that I like the set up at Monschau/Hofen as its a mini game/puzzle within a monster game.

[Plain Ian]

High level maps showing 6th SS Panzer movements on Day 1. 

Start of Wacht.


Dusk on the 16th.


277th VGD has done enough to dislodge US defenders and KG Muller (25th SS Rgt) is now deployed along the Hollerath Road ready for the next stage. A lot of congestion involved and basically it was a case of moving 277th units out of the way or holding them back.

KG Krause has been parked up behind 326th VGD. If patrols detect he is thining his lines I may just attack from here.

KG Kuhlmann has just struggled through the roads and has been committed along the Bullingen Road. The 12th VGD has moved to allow this.

Peiper is concentrated at Bucholz station. 2 King Tigers have broken down and been lost on the approach. 12th VGD have done well to push US forces back.

3rd FJD have probably suffered the most casualties but have finally over ran the the 18th Cav. KG Hansen has exploited south and west and secured bridgeheads over the L'Our. 

South of Honsfeld KG Z of Pz Bde 150 is attempting to move north towards Bullingen.   

This isn't an easy game to play as there a lot of units to move and coordinate. I've made a few mistakes (Bremer 12th SS moved south for some reason) but I've tried to keep things simple. That's why I've committed 12th SS on the Hollerath axis and further south at Bullingen. 
1st SS is going to be squeezed and after Peiper was committed at Bucholz St. it was easier to use Hansen to exploit south and west.

More later.

[Plain Ian]

A closer look at Bullingen-Krinkelt-Hollerath axis. 

277th VGD have cleared 6 front line Pillboxes and lost 302 men. Not a lot but still higher than I would like. (US:Ger losses in men are at 1:1) More importantly Fatigue is still low apart from a few units which failed assaulting. 

The 991 Grenadier Rgt was in the rear so losses are spread between 989th and 990th. The 3 companies of the Pioneer Battalion spearheaded a lot of attacks and were used to clear Obstacles so they took a share of the losses. 

Pillbox A was assaulted twice this turn but held off both assaults. I've been careful to allow retreat paths for defenders in order to push them out but because I wanted KG Muller as far forward as possible it looks like I will have by pass Pillbox A and spend time eliminating it.

There is another Pillbox to the south with a US A/T company which will be attacked next turn. 

I forgot to label up the blue SS units but these are part of KG Kuhlmann. By securing the Pillboxes and pushing forward another hex, the 277th VGD has freed up the north-south road. This has allowed me to push KG Kuhlmann's armour forward. 2 comnpany of Panthers are now forward and two further stuck further back in the road.

I'm afraid the road is not visible under the mass of units. 

If you like micro managing and puzzles then this is the game for you. If you just want to push things about then avoid! <g>

12th VGD sector next.

[Plain Ian]

12th VGD/3rd FJD

The 12th VGD is a decent outfit (B morale) and has fought well to clear the way north of Buchholz Station. Casualties have been relatively low, 187 men. The 3rd FJD has lost 227 men, and the 277th VGD to the north has lost 302. The only failure has been at Lanzerath where a stubborn handful of US troops hold out and block the road. 

It was initially hoped that Peiper would be used to breakthough and attack towards Bullingen but he has got bogged down at Buchholz. It is KG Hansen which has been used to exploit south west. Bridgeheads were seized at Andler and Schonberg and assaults this turn have seized Herresbach.

3rd FJD struggled to overcome 14th Cavalry Squadron. The 9th FJR suffered heavy losses and disruptions from US artillery. A few failed assaults against the fortified towns of Auw and Krewinkel also caused early set backs. However they have finally cleared the front line allowing SS and special troops (Pz Bde 150) to exploit forward.   

[ComradeP]

That looks like quite a puzzle indeed, I don't think there's another campaign scenario with "real" congestion like this. Moving mobile units is usually a pretty trivial affair compared to the real world situation.

The campaign in France '40, where the Germans historically experienced serious traffic jams in the Ardennes and had to move units through the woods in phases, is a clean affair compared to this.

Out of curiosity: are there separate replacement settings in the OOB for some (German) formations, compared to the PDT 1% replacement/1% recovery value for the Germans? One shortcoming of the series is how easy it is to recover uncommon or rare equipment with high quality formations, though that is partially compensated by the (much) higher losses. In stock Kharkov '43, for example, German vehicle losses don't really matter much as they can quickly be replaced.

[Plain Ian]

That looks like quite a puzzle indeed, I don't think there's another campaign scenario with "real" congestion like this. Moving mobile units is usually a pretty trivial affair compared to the real world situation.

The campaign in France '40, where the Germans historically experienced serious traffic jams in the Ardennes and had to move units through the woods in phases, is a clean affair compared to this.

Out of curiosity: are there separate replacement settings in the OOB for some (German) formations, compared to the PDT 1% replacement/1% recovery value for the Germans? One shortcoming of the series is how easy it is to recover uncommon or rare equipment with high quality formations, though that is partially compensated by the (much) higher losses. In stock Kharkov '43, for example, German vehicle losses don't really matter much as they can quickly be replaced.

Movement can be a trivial affair but only if you don't bunch up and keep about 140-180 stacking levels on the roads. Road limits are the standard 360, so this allows you to rush 180 sized units such as SS Pz Genadier Companies or Panther Companies (17-18) along the road quickly if they are stuck at the back.

The hardest part of the game is keeping each Kampfgruppen together. Tracked units can move large distances so you have to stop yourself grabbing every tracked unit that can reach a spot and ignoring its organisation.

I've never noticed replacement settings in the OOB? Will have a look. I have noticed breakdowns occurring in tanks. I tend to check my Pnthers and King Tigers after moving. It also might be happening in Supply vehicles? I'm pretty sure some units are losing 1 vehicle and its not due to a unit drawing supply?

[ComradeP]

360 Men for road movement is quite low, particularly if there are numerous company-sized units or units with a dozen or so vehicles that can't be merged due to using different equipment types. That will be one of the things that creates such a traffic jam as seen in your screenshot thus far.

The breakdown values in the parameter data dialog you posted earlier are high, so even with the relatively small vehicle units and the reduction due to quality for better units, you're likely to lose vehicles left and right even on major roads.

I've never played with Explicit Supply instead of VST, so I can't comment on what effects that might have.