Biazzo Ridge, 1943
5th March 2009, Comments Off
Second World War, Battlegroup Panzergrenadier, 20mm
This small game (fought out on a 6×4 foot table) was a scenario from Dave Brown’s forthcoming Mediterranean Theatre scenario book, for Battlegroup Panzergrenadier. Despite the dreadful name this is actually an excellent set of rules, and as the Second Edition is due out any day now, I thought I’d give them an extra mention in dispatches.
Anyway, this scenario is set in Sicily, the day after the Allied landings there, and features a hastily scraped together force of American paratroopers and regular infantry. They have have to hold a ridge in order to protect the landing beaches behind them. The Germans attacking them were from the Hermann Goering Division, and included a brace of Tiger tanks. They had twelve turns to capture the ridge.
After several dozen games using these rules I’ve learned my lesson. Rather than deploy on the ridgeline I posted my paratroopers in foxholes, just behind the crest – a little like Wellington’s reverse slope tactic, only with bazookas and carbines. When the Germans reached the crest I let them have it, and in a couple of turns the bulk of their infantry was either killed or driven off. The Tiger tanks were a little harder to deal with, but the scenario included a special rule, where they expose their weak belly armour when lumbering over the crest.
Of course, it didn’t help that at that crucial moment the German player lost the initiative, which effectively gave me two chances to do him harm. the result was a lucky shot by a bazooka, which brewed up one of the two Tigers. The other was suppressed by fire from a lowly 75mm pack howitzer, at which point the Germans gave up the assault, and ordered a general retreat.
Afterwards the German players (well, mainly Dougie) complained bitterly that the scenario was poorly balanced. Their gripe was that “Elite” paratroopers were very hard to kill, there were too many American defenders, and the Germans never stood much of a chance to clear the ridge in twelve turns. Of course, if the bazooka hadn’t scored a lucky hit against a Tiger, then they would probably have been quite happy, trundling around and running over the hapless paratroopers. What a difference a “double six” makes!