Merseyside Stalingrad Campaign: Northern Sector, Map Area I attack, Operation Blue German Heer list v Jamie Sanchez Russians

Been a while since I played Jamie, and decided I needed more AT for this match up given how I suffered v Keith in the first game of the campaign.

Accordingly, I took a small elite force consisting of the following all veteran unless stated:

 2nd Lt, Medic, 3 x 5 Heer with SMG and LMG, 1 x 6 early war SS with 3 SMGs, 1 x 6  Pioneer Squad with 4 SMGs and a flamethrower, 1 x 7 Brandenburger squad with 7 SMGs, 1 Flamethrower team, BMW 75, regular truck and regular Panzer 38t

Jamie ran a good Stalingrad list, consisting of:

Veteran 1st Lt

Inexperienced Commissar
6 Veteran Pioneers with flamethrower
10 man regular SMG
10 man regular rifle squad
Free Inexperienced Squad
2 x Regular sniper teams (already deployed)
Regular Maxim MMG with gun shield
Regular Zis-3
 Regular BEAST of a KV-2

The scenario was Maximum Attrition, but I had 12 dice v Soviet 11 (That's not right, is it?) As we were battling at the outskirts, the city was still fairly wide open.

Sniper to the left of me...

Sniper to the right

We played the ruined stories as buildings, and walls as walls but kept the board fairly open otherwise with trenches and craters being hard cover too.

I kept my Brandenburgers off the board in reserve, everything else on first wave while the Soviets were all first wave.

The truck advanced on first, far left with the SS and Pioneers in, and the pioneers disgorged to cover

2 Veteran LMG support squads advanced on my right, to try and spread the Soviets around so I could concentrate my assault on the left...

But Jamie decided to rumble on the Beast, running straight in through the old factory... and I couldn't resist taking it on with the 38t, which did hit and score a pin!

Sadly, the BMW didn't survive the advancing two rifle squads...

End of turn 1, with the Soviets well spread, and my assault units heavily to my left.

Left hand view, with the SS ready to assault up to the sniper. The 2nd Lt is near the truck, while an LMG team advances up behind the medic and flamethrower team. The Soviets counter on the left with 10 smgs, commissar and maxim, with their pioneers and 1st Lt behind the KV-2

TURN 2   Oh the joy, the 38t scores another hit and rolls a 6 on the beast, immobilising it!!! Its down with 3 pins.

Another picture of my heroic panzer, as the flamethrower team runs up intent on finishing the job...

The Soviet SMG squad advance up to kill the flamethrower, but only a few at in range and they kill the second man. This bold move results in them being close enough for the German pioneers to advance and kill half the soviets, with the flamethrower sadly missing...

Another panoramic...

The Soviet pioneers quickly redeploy around to support the SMG squad, while the SS charge up and kill the sniper team easily, although they lost a man in the process..

The maxim adds a pin to the SS in the building...

Just a reminder that the 38t immobilised the KV-2...

My two support squads are still missing the sniper on the right and distracting the rifle squad which are advancing, while the soviets sniper manages a hit, but no kill

The Soviet centre advances...

The SS have anice view at the end of turn 2

Turn 3. The Soviets draw first dice, and the 5 SMGs charge in

They lose 2,  kill 3 but the Soviets cannot consolidate out of range of the Germans

The Brandenburgers appear from the rear, ignoring the maxim to kill half the Soviet Pioneers who went down. But the Soviets are resolute!!!

On the left, the LMG support squad kill 1 of the SMG squad, so the 2nd Lt closes up and shoots one more with his pistol, causing the lone SMG member to surrender. The 38t advances up and pours MMGs into the rifle squad, while my two LMG squad add pins onto the free AT armed rifle squad. I lose 3 men from a Zis 3 shot, but the Nco and LMG remain.

On my left, the commissar misses the brandenburgers with his pistol although the maxim turns and kills one. My lone flammenwerfer advances up but missed the KV-2. My SS run downstairs and medic runs up to support.

Turn 4  Things had got really tense at end of turn 3, and I forgot to take some pictures but my left wing assault was looking good. My dice wasn't first, but it was 2nd and the SS in the building successfully assault and wipe out the Soviet pioneers!

HERO of the SOVIET UNION!!! I was so depressed mid turn 3 as the 1st Lt ran up behind the KV-2, and Jamie ordered it to fire (with 3 pins I was feeling confident). As you can see, had a good heavy howitzer view of the panzer flank. Jamie rolled a double 1 for his orders test, losing all pins. However, he rolled a 1 to hit the 38t, though he did kill the flammenwerfer. The first dice turn 4 was his, and the KV-2 rolled a 2 to hit...

Turn 5 The Commissar and Maxim have been eliminated, the left flank secure...

More MMG fire in turn 4 had reduced the rifles squad too...

The Zis 3 turns to his flank, while the free rifle squad fail to assault the 38t

In return, the 2 Heer squads put them up on 4 pins...

The 38t advances round out of KV-2's sight and only by going down does the rifle squad survive

Damn those plucky Reds, as despite 4 pins, they double 1 the roll to assault the 38t, losing all pins but mercifully failing to destroy the 38t.. They did glance it and we realised that the KV2 should only have been glanced and therefore not immobilised!!! Jamie was fine about it, as it had been shooting at the 38t anyway and missing...

My two Heer squads add pins again, not gonna get my tank...

My fearless panzer, hero of the Fatherland...

With the KV-2 active again, my left hook spread out...

Turn 6 Damn, those Russkies are persistent... Fortunately for me, they bounce off the 38t

The return of the beast meant I spent most of my squads going down, bar the remaining 2 Brandenburgers who lost 2 men to the KV machine gun, 1 to the Soviet lt, leaving my sole NCO facing the brave 1st Lt (he ducked the bullets going down). Then lo and behold, I found the MMG on the rear turret... Fortunately, despite 3 hits, Jamie's dice weren't good...

The KV-2 front MMG point blanked the SS, who took it, losing only 1 man...

As the game came to a close, its worth  showing my hero of the Reich, as this soviet sniper never managed a kill shot all game!!!

The two man Heer team finished off the rifle squad, then added pins to the free squad who stayed in their trench...

The depleted remnants of the plucky Red peasants...

My left flank at the end...

The Brandenburgers were awesome in the Russian backline, but they couldn't get the 1st Lt, who was pretty awesome himself...

The game finished 7-3 to the Germans, but it was actually quite close as I had dropped a lot of men... The KV-2 was scary but the gunner will be against a wall in the morning... Cant believe with 3 and 4 pins, the Russians rolled double ones for orders... Very stoic defence!!!

And so, the Stalingrad perimeter shrinks a wee bit more for the Soviets!!! Have to say I really enjoyed this game, and Jamie was great to play against even as his dice ebbed and ebbed, and
that sniper was bloody awful...