Eastern Front Command Ops: Across the Tartar Ditch AAR

Across the Tartar Ditch is a new scenario I am finishing up about the fight for the Perekop isthmus, a crucial approach to the port city of Sevastopol on the Black Sea.  The scenario, set in September of 1941, is 2 days and 15 hours long.

LIV Corps of the German 11th Army is matched up against the Soviet 51st army.  The build of this scenario is almost complete.  I still need to finish adding Soviet units as well as 1-2 additional German infantry battalions.

This morning I play-tested it for the first time and ended up with a marginal defeat as the German player.  I actually had the upper hand for much of the battle but I didn't push as aggressively as I should have on Day 2 and was unable to complete the capture of three of the five terrain objectives.

I am also using Snagit for the first time.  So far I like it for these blogs as it is always hard to understand what is going on based on a screenshot.


Day 1 attacks by the 73rd Inf division's 170th and 185th infantry regiments against unknown Soviet forces (ive not completed in the intel display portion of the scenario build).  1st SS Panzer Division arrives on Day 2 and they draw the heavy assignment of seizing Perekop, crossing the Tartar Ditch and finally seizing Armyansk.


My initial attacks are stalling out.  II bn 185th is moving out of reserves into a support role for the attack on Alexsandrovka and the 170th Pioneer bn is also moving up.
1st SS Panzer division enters the battlefield on Day 2.

1st SS PZ division orders for Day 2.  My attack is stalling at Chaban and instead of taking the objective with just the two infantry regiments I am pulling the 2nd SS PG regiment off of it's initial line of attack to support the Chaban drive.
With hours to go I have every objective under attack and two of them under control including the town of Perekop at the entrance to the Tartar Ditch.  My attack on Alexandrovska continues to stall, even with supporting artillery barrages from four artillery battalions.

The final screen.

The final result.  As I mentioned earlier, I was a little slow to develop an aggressive attack plan for Day 2 and this really set me back.  A full Soviet OOB would make this much harder and I can't wait to finish adding the naval infantry to this scenario.

My hope is to have this scenario ready to play by the end of next week.  More to follow...

Comments

Doug Miller said…
Looking great Chris! Can't wait to play it.

I also like what you're doing with SnagIt. I'm going to look into that myself.
February 6, 2014 at 6:54 PM
Chris said…
Thanks Doug. There is a free 14 day trial version which I am using. So far from what I've seen I am going to get it. There is also a video capture option.

As for this scenario, I think its one of my favorite ones that I've done. The Soviets actually outnumber the Germans and have air superiority. You can't see it in these screenshots but the two infantry regiments took a beating from the six soviet artillery units that are nearby. For most of day 1 they pounded those regiments near Chaban. I ended up moving all of the divisions artillery into a supporting role just to keep my men in the fight until the 1st SS Panzer arrived.
February 6, 2014 at 8:42 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

John Tiller's Campaign Series - Buy It Now

Image
John Tiller's campaign series game for $9.99 at  Matrix Games Ltd.  is a steal. There are so many great scenarios. I have been playing a Fastov scenario this morning detailing the 25th Panzer Division probe into a Soviet armor formation in 1943. If my memory is correct, the division commander is killed and the reconnaissance battalion is wiped out. The Campaign Series game lays this meeting engagement out on a beautiful map with the full OOB (over 300 unit counters are present). I have considered setting up this battle before for Panzer Battles and Command Ops, so to find it in this title's scenario list this morning was very exciting! This is a zoomed out view of the northern portion of the Fastov map in the map editor. Each hex is 250 meters. In the image below, 25th Panzer is probing north towards Fastov along both sides of the Unava river. The scenario designer set a minor victory at 600 objective points and a major victory at 1200 points. You can technically achieve
Read more

Maxwell's Marauders: Find the Observation Post

Image
Maxwell’s Marauders, 1st Platoon, C Company of the 7th Marine Regiment is a fictional unit, filled with characters that I have created to deepen my connection to my Squad Battles “ Proud and the Few ” gaming. The New York boys, Bullseye, Sgt. Rock and the rest are going to be persistent characters (unless they die on my digital battlefields) that take me through the War in the Pacific. From Guadalcanal to New Britain to Peleliu and finally Okinawa, the 1st Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment served with distinction and so too will Maxwell’s Marauders. Along the way, my hope is that by investing in the backstories of the soldiers on the map, I will play smarter and take fewer risks with them, enjoy my gaming and appreciate this great Squad Battles system in a deeper way. About these scenarios The scenarios are short (under 20 turns (100 minutes or less of combat). They are historical, even though the unit is fictional. Each battlefield map is an approximation of the terrain Frisbie’s
Read more

Edson's Ridge

Image
September 12, 1942, just before sunset: [Historical scenario] Japanese Major General Kiyotake Kawaguchi has come to Guadalcanal to lead the attack against the Marine foothold on the island at Henderson Airfield. The I and III battalions of the 124th Infantry regiment are to attack from the south, along with the Kuma Battalion, II battalion of the 4th infantry regiment 19th engineer battalion. Kawaguchi will personally lead these battalions. A composite of Japanese engineers, special naval landing troops and the Oka Force, II Bn 124 Inf Rgt are to attack from the West. The Japanese objectives are the Marine bridge over the Lunga, the air traffic control tower on Pagoda Hill, the main runway hangars, and the Fighter One airstrip. Kawaguchi has grossly underestimated the strength of the Marine force facing him. The Marines have also disrupted his supply base along the coast at Tasimboko, dispersing a small reserve force, his artillery, and supplies. Special Terrain rules: The Lunga River
Read more