Author	goosebrown (Britain, United States)
Method	VASSAL
Victor	Draw
Participants	JohnG1
Play Date	2022-10-21
Language	English
Scenario	AAAD003

Finally something a 37mm AA gun can destroy!

An Italian tank!

Too bad it was stuck in the middle of a bunch of Falschrimjägers that. Refused. To. Die.

This is the epitome of way too few forces to cover the objectives but my intrepid opponent did just that. The objectives were to take control of both hills on the east half of the board. One hill close to a wadi where the Allies would start and a larger one farther back behind an open plain with little cover. Allied player needed to take both hills. The German commander wisely realized with one company of troops and one platoon of Italian "tanks" that there was not a real way to hold both hills so he put a token force of a platoon dug in on the closer hill and spread out the rest of the company along the edge of the larger hill.

The tank deployed in the plains between the two hills to savage any force coming close enough in the spirit of the Black Knight! NONE SHALL PASS!

As the allied commander I deployed the Company from the East Surrey regiment on my left in the wadi and the notional tank destroyers on the right to work against the notional tank.

When the whistle blew, the Surreys left the wadi straight for the hill on the German right where the bulk of the defenders were dug in. This was not going to be a pretty fight, but there was just not the firepower I needed to crack the nut with preparitory fire. It was going to be the bayonet or nothing for them.

On the right the 761st TD batallion split and ran the two M3/75 companies up the left side of the smaller hill which was held by the Germans and the AA element, an M6, charged along the far right flank to get to a position where it could get a crossfire with the slightly slower M3/75s.

The Falschirmjägers held their fire as the Surreys came on across a 600 yard front centered on the left most positions on the ridge in front of them. Desultory mortar fire dropped among them as succeedingly more useless barrages of 25 pounder shells stretched overhead.

On the Allied right after the italian tank started to place rounds down range, the M3s found a stopping place about 1000 yards downrange and started to return the Italian fire. At the same time the M6 rounded the hill and rocky outcroppings to the south and pulled into a position where their 37mm could start to threaten the M13 in its dug in position.

The Surreys continued the advance starting to take moral losses that forced a platoon to seek cover and which took several of another platoon. On the right a gun duel progressed from the M6 and the M3s. Shortly after the M6 dealt a maximum range shot which put a few holes in the tank causing a step loss.

As the Surries pushed their way up the hill, the Lufwaffe began its work on the exposed tank destroyers as the tank fired on them from its prepared position. On the hill the fighting began in earnest as a platoon of Infantry and an Engineer took step losses, but they did not abandon the assault. Over the next 45 minutes the battles in on the hill continued and expanded to cover the entire German force. Over and over, the Surreys wer bested, but they tenaciously held on and rallying units came to join them. As the combat became a hairball on the ridge, I endeavored to drop mortars and 25 pounders on the hinge in the German line but actually managed to hit my own troops more often than I did the Germans.

There will be a report no doubt.

About this point the Italian tank exploded from a solid hit from an M3/75 and the TDs on the right started to concentrate their fire on the Germans on the ridge.

Just at this point, the Luftwaffe showed up in strength and dealt constantly to the TDs for the rest of the game, but were only able to inflict a step loss on one unit, the M6, now close enough to lend support, firing away at the Me109 and subsequent JU-88 that came in for support.

With time in play almost up and no hills occupied. The allied commander extended his resignation and ended the game. A draw, but a fine fight.