** Arctic Front: Delaying Action at Ylimaa - The Matrix Games version of East Front II

UPDATED TO MCS 2.00. PLEASE MAKE SURE TO USE THIS LATEST VERSION

7 October, 1944

[Ylimaa peninsula, 50 km SW from Rovaniemi, Finland.] [H2H] [HIS] [CSL]

For Germans, Lapland War was about execution of Operation Birke plan to the letter: evacuating the vast amounts of fuel and supplies the Reich could ill afford to lose, from Finland to Norway, with the scarce motor transportation and even scarcer fuel supplies available to 20th Mountain Army.

For Finns, Lapland War was about clearing the Northern Finland from their new enemy, in a manner of advancing carefully among the very scarce road network now devilishly mined with bridges blown. When in touch with the well prepared German rearguard, the only option available was to sent the infantry on foot to flank the well dug-in defenders, often for 10-15 miles in difficult wilderness. All this often only to witness the Germans blowing another set of bridges, hopping into their trucks, then retreating another 15 miles further to north.

Ylimaa isthmus was one of the well trenched areas where Germans prepared to hold the enemy for a longer period of time. Colonel Kühler of 218th Mountain Jaeger Rgt was fuming, however. Well aware the Finns would not try to force their way through his defences but would flank him with strong forces instead, he had repeatedly asked for but time again strictly refused to deviate from the written plans of defence. Worse still, Kühler was just informed his liaison officer had got lost and been captured by Finns with full details of the German defence plan in his person.

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(Scenario picture: 'Searching for mines, 06 Nov 1944'. Source: SA-kuva.fi)

[Scandinavian Terrain sub mod recommended to be enabled when playing this scenario]

[ALL : N AF: N VV][2.0]