Americans succeeded in gaining control of all but northwestern edge of Stavelot. Turn two, the German reinforcements showed up and cautiously probed for a weak spot. In the meantime, Peiper chose to rush the town before the Amis took the bridge and Panzers took positions in the east while waiting for most of the infantry to catch up (minus the tank riders who accompanied them for security) American mortars positioned on the hill west of the town took a heavy toll on the Fallschirmjaeger while American artillery also cut huge swaths in the advancing troops. The battle seesawed all the way until the final turn. During the battle, the senior leader was unexpectedly cut down and chaos reigned for a couple turns while the second in command could not gain control of the battle (curse those 11s!). Nevertheless KG Peiper succeeded in whittling down US control of the town until the end.