The Line Infantry scenario was one of the first that I played to learn the game system. The Germans are defending hexes and have a good mix of troops as well as the Americans having to take the hexes have armor and a good amount of OBA.

During the game the American tanks had a tough time maneuvering around the German AT gun. OBA would disrupt it occasionally, but could not destroy it. The American infantry tried to move up to assault but they would get hit with German Op fire and disrupt. The key for the Americans were the hedgerows and using them as cover to move as close as possible as well as continual OBA on the towns. Eventually the Germans disrupted or demoralized and the Americans could get a good assault going. It came down to the last turn, after the Germans retreated from the towns, they head for 1001 and the Americans need to pursue. A INF and M4 had to slug it out with the German GREN for the hex on turn 12. Americans won it, but it could have gone the other way.

Panzer Grenadier: Airborne Introductory Edition

Scenario 14 – Line Infantry

12 June 1944

Southeast of Carentan the 327th Glider Regiment, less 3rd Bn and Company G, faced west and launched an attack on the German-held village of Le Mesnil in an attempt to clear the relatively open ground to the east of the city. All of the American airborne formations stayed in the line longer than planned due to the tenacious German defense. The Americans showed they could be pretty tenacious themselves.

Game Length: 12 turns

Force Notes

The Germans have a small defensive force of GREN with a bit of HMG and 81mm support. They have small OBA. The Americans use INF in this one, not PARA, with higher FP (and equal morale in this one). They INF HMG are especially more powerful than the PARA HMG. They also have a handful of Shermans, an Engineer platoon and a whole bunch of OBA.

Victory Conditions

The American are attempting to take both of the key towns and block the exit from the map, while the Germans goal is to inflict step losses on the Americans.

Initial Deployment

The US strategy is to hold back on assaulting initially and let the artillery pound 0604 until turn 5. Then send in the tanks and engineers to overwhelm the Germans. Meanwhile, a smaller force will threaten 0803 to keep troops there from reinforcing 0604.

For the Germans, the strategy revolves around a gradual withdrawal. Wait until the Americans get close to 0604, leave one unit and have the other retreat to 0803 where the 50mm AT is waiting to take care of the Shermans. One GREN platoon and one reduced GREN platoon are left on the flanks to slow up flanking moves.

Turns 1-3

Turn 1 sees the US advance and call down a barrage on 0603 which misses. For the first couple of turns, I only gave the US 48 points of artillery instead of 56, which meant a one column shift difference. Based on rolls, it wouldn’t have changed much.

On turn 2, the artillery manages to disrupt the HMG in 0604, but it quickly recovers. German artillery misses, and German opportunity fire isn’t able to stop the Americans advancing on the right flank.

Turn 3 is also relatively uneventful. One American leader is disrupted, and the sides trade ineffectual fire. However, the Americans are in a good position to quickly rush the towns.

Turns 4-6

Turn 4 has the sides trade more fire that disrupts a few units that rapidly recover. So far, this is not the world’s most dynamic scenario. However, that’s about to change as the Americans hit launch time. The Germans grab initiative on Turn 5 and first pull out of 1005 to 1004 to avoid being assaulted. US OBA disrupts the HMG in 0604, but it recovers. The GREN retreats to 0803, leaving the HMG to its fate. The Shermans, the Engineer and an INF move into assault position. German OBA demoralizes an INF in 0905, and Fog of War ends the turn early (Note: This is about the smallest scenario where I’d use FoW).

On turn 6 the US gets the initiative with +2 impulses. Instead of risking scatter on the OBA, the US assaults the HMG in 0604 immediately. The Americans are on the 30+ column while the Germans are on the 9 column. Bad luck for the US, as the Americans roll a 1 (M2) and the Germans roll a 5 (M2). The HMG is demoralized, while on the US side the M4s, the Captain and the Engineers are all disrupted.

The Americans then send 2 INF and the 1st LT to assault 1004. The Germans get first fire on the 9 column and get an M result and disrupt both INF units. The disrupted INF are not able to harm the Germans. The Americans begin to advance on 0803, while the Germans send a reduced GREN to 1004 to reinforce the troops there. The German 50mm fires ineffectually at the Shermans. The Demoralized HMG in 0604 fails its morale check and flees, and the American free shot rolls another 1 for an M2…however, the HMG’s luck runs out as it dies of compound morale failure.

Turns 7 – 9

The Germans grab the initiative and assault in 1004, hoping to take out the disrupted INF there. They are on the 13 column while the US is on the 9. The Germans roll a 1 and miss, the Americans a 3 (M), but no Germans are affected. Meanwhile, over in 0604, the disrupted leader recovers, but the Shermans and the Engineers do not. German OBA slams into the HMGs in 0606 and the 2nd LT is eliminated by being demoralized a 2nd time! The US returns the favor when its OBA hits 0803 and rolls a 12 for an X result which reduces a GREN and eliminates the truck. One GREN is disrupted, the other demoralized, but they each recover a step of morale.

On turn 8 the US OBA misses. German AT fire comes dangerously close to eliminating a step of Shermans, which in turn finally recover morale (although the engineers do not). The US assaults in 1004 and both sides are on the 13 column. The US rolls a 3 (M1) while the Germans roll a 5 (1). The German LT and reduced GREN are demoralized while the full strength GREN is disrupted. On the US side, an INF is reduced, and when a 3 is rolled, the 1st LT is killed! The US is down to 2 leaders on the map and the troops are in disarray. The German GREN recovers morale while the reduced GREN fails and flees the assault hex.

On turn 9, the demoralized INF flees the assault hex. The Germans choose to assault in 1004. They are on the 9 column while the US are on the 3 column. The Americans roll a 2 and miss, the Germans a 6 (1) and eliminate the reduced INF platoon. OBA is mostly ineffective, causing disruptions, but units quickly recover.

Turns 10-12

The Americans are short on time and leaders, but the Germans are running out of warm bodies. They need that demoralized Grenadier to recover. Unfortunately that doesn’t happen on turn 10. Meanwhile, the assault force (M4, ENG, INF) closes in on 0803. German opportunity fire misses, and the USA OBA demoralizes the AT gun. Other Americans filter around the town, heading for 1001, and there just aren’t enough effective Germans to hurt them.

The Germans have the initiative on turn 11 and the units in 0803 and the mortar in 0802 fire away, disrupting an infantry in 0903. The US begins the assault on 0803. They are on the 24 column, while the defending Germans are on the 9 column. The US rolls a 4 (1) while the Germans roll a 3 (M). This eliminates the GREN in the hex (highest morale) but all other units pass. For the US, the Captain and the Shermans are disrupted. The Germans desperately assault 0904 hoping to break through to the town, but roll a 1 in the assault and don’t hurt the HMGs.

On the last turn, the Germans are on the 3 column, the Americans are on the 18 column. The US rolls a 3 (M2) and demoralize the AT gun, while the Germans roll a 4 and miss. The German mortar reinforces the town, while the AT gun recovers to disrupted. Meanwhile, in 0604, the GREN loses a step when it assaults, and then the Americans assault back and eliminate it completely.

The scenario ends in a Draw!

Final Thoughts

Wow…this scenario did not go as I expected it would. I thought the German AT guns would be able to at least reduce the Shermans…instead they missed all game. I expected the massive US OBA to really soften up the towns. They had minimal impact. And the US losing 2 leaders was a real kick in the pants. It really brought home how important leaders are to an advance. I think this is a tough scenario for the Germans, without some very good die rolls, they will be hard pressed to inflict 5 step losses. At the same time, with slightly better luck, the Germans might have had a much more secure position in one or both towns. Still, opposing combined arms and Engineers makes towns much less valuable defensive positions.

Historical Conclusion

The advance went well until late in the day when heavy German artillery firing over open sights halted the glider infantrymen. The Americans would not stay halted for long, however. A day later, more energetic attacks drove the Germans back.

It looked like a sure thing for an American victory in this one but one platoon of grenadiers were able to hold out to the very end against heavy odds. It really came down to the last turn and activation.

The American attack did not begin well as the OBA did not initially deliver the results needed to weaken and break down a very small, outnumbered German force holding on to two towns and a road. Both sides also had a somewhat lopsided leader draw; the American leaders got all combat modifiers but no morale modifiers whereas it was the opposite for the Germans -all morale but no combat modifiers. The American attack was divided in two parts; most units attempting to take the town in hex 0604 while a smaller detachment advanced further ahead to knock out a 50mm AT gun dug-in by the objective road. The plan was for both groups to merge for a final assault on the other town in hex 0803. It seemed like a lot for the American forces to take on in just 12 turns. Eventually German resistance did crumble but one GREN unit refused to give way in town hex 0604, continually rallying from demoralization and disruption back to good order while defending in an assault. All other German leaders and units were either eliminated or had fled demoralized into the surrounding hedgerows. It came down to the Germans having to eliminate just one more American step to win and the Americans had to hope that the demoralized GREN unit in the town would fail it's recovery attempt and flee the town. The GREN recovers back to disrupted status and holds on. In desperation American OBA is called in on the assault hex, taking the risk of eliminating one it's own demoralized units giving the Germans the win. American morale checks are passed and the Germans get an M2 result on their units. The German Lieutenant is eliminated but the GREN unit just barely makes it so this battle ends in yet another 'Airborne' draw.

I believe this one could go either way though American OBA is quite capable of packing a heavy punch with 1 x 24 and 2 x 16 increments available. However, with just 12 turns and 3 objectives the Americans have to act fast. I was pleasantly surprised with the way this one turned out and give it a solid "4". I also believe it has a great replay value in either a solo or shared match.

A quick morning scenario before the holiday. Not so much for either side here. The Germans held both town hexes til late in the fight. OBA was ineffective for most of the battle, except when friendly fire hit the US troops a demoralized and disrupted a platoon each. The US did manage to assault and take both town hexes. The German 50mm did take out a step of M4s before it was eliminated. The Germans did put up enough of a fight that the US was unable to take 1001 before the end. Draw.

Author	KirkH (Germany)
Method	VASSAL
Victor	United States
Participants	unknown
Play Date	2009-09-03
Language	English
Scenario	AirI014

Played this one online against a friend using VASSAL. I was the Germans and set up with my AT gun and a Gren in one town with a reduced Gren and a full strength Gren in another. His Americans advanced on the southernmost town that had my AT gun and Gren. Before he reached it he rolled a 12 on an artillery roll and killed two of the three steps in the hex. He then assaulted the hex and easily defeated my disrupted, reduced Gren. After assaulting and eliminating my reduced HMG he was going to attack the next town. His preliminary bombardment resulted in a 3 roll, killing my reduced Gren and leaving me with only two combat units (one beng a mortar) on the board. At that point we both agreed the game was over so decided to call it quits. This scenario is one of those small ones that could possibly go either way depending on how one rolls. In this case he had the two good rolls but it just as easily could have been me

This time around I played my old high school buddy. Once again I was the Germans and he the GI's. In the end it was exactly the same result as the first time I played it. The US artillery was simply too much firepower for the few German units to deal with. The only way I can see the Germans possibly winning this one is to spread out all units to one per hex so it will take more shots for the Americans to destroy them.

I played this scenario PBEM with Tracey (PGTank-Dude), and after getting soundly defeated in our previous Airborne scenario (#9), I was delighted to kick the crap out of his Germans in this one.

With only 12 turns, and 3 geographic objectives to capture (2 of which are towns), the Americans really must put the pedal to the metal to get this one done. Our battle's end state adequately sums up the brutality of the fighting:

• 4 demoralized and 3 disrupted US platoons are scattered about the battlefield, abandoned by their officers as the Americans pressed relentlessly forwards
• the sole surviving German unit of any kind is a demoralized GREN platoon

As the Americans, the first objective fell quickly but things started to jam up on the second as Tracey fell back more or less cohesively and my men began to become seriously strung-out due to the aforementioned relentless attacking to beat the clock.

The outcome was in serious doubt as late as the beginning of Turn 8, until I smoked the initiative roll and found myself with 4 straight activations. A brutal artillery attack on the last town roughed up the defenders just enough to make the subsequent assault a do-or-die affair, and there was lots of dying!

By the end of Turn 10 my Shermans rolled into the final objective hex and my forces, though scattered all over the place, were victorious.

Shad's Thoughts

I picked up some early momentum by winning the first 5 or 6 initiative rolls in a row. After that, when my force cohesion began to crumble the 56 factor American artillery really picked up the slack.

The Germans put up a spirited defense, especially the 81mm who tore the hell out of my platoons time and time again, but I see no possibility of a German victory here. From the start you're only playing for a draw.

Why a 3?

• PRO - Time constraints make the American player play very aggressively or lose
• PRO - The 3 objectives, which are more or less linear in geography, make for a nice progression to the battle
• CON - The German player pretty much takes a beating for 12 straight turns
• CON - To me, the German player has no hope for victory, only a draw

FINAL - was exciting as the American, would make for a good, short solitaire scenario. Not recommended for head-to-head play.

For my third attempt at this scenario I decided to play it solo. I set up Germans in two towns with mortar unit supporting from the west. Early US artillery shot eliminated the AT gun but thereafter American luck waned. It looked like a possible German victory until with three turns to go a snakeyes roll on an American artillery shot eliminated the last of the German opposition, allowing the Americans to garner the victory. The GI's still won, but it took longer than my last two playings.

Had an evening open, so played this short one.

The Germans set up in the villages, with two flanking platoons dug-in behind hedgerows. The Americans advanced into spotting range of the town, and the fight began. The Germans disrupted the senior American officer and one infantry platoon with artillery, but after that it was all downhill for the Wehrmacht.

Over the course of three turns, the American off-board artillery eliminated the German anti-tank gun and half an infantry platoon, and demoralized a whole infantry platoon (which never did recover). The Americans moved their tanks up and easily captured both towns with combined assaults, losing only one step of engineers to the German off-board artillery. The Americans won with an hour to spare.

German set-up. The intention was to establish a small out post position due north of the town in 0803 to slow the advance from the west. A grenadier platoon was positioned in 0805 to delay any approach to the town. The other infantry units were deployed into the towns. The AT gun was positioned to cover the open ground between the two towns basically covering the 0700 hex line. The German commander was willing to conduct a delaying fight for town 0604, intending to fall back to town 0803 for the final fight.

The Americans quickly developed a three-pronged attack. The M-4, an engineer, HVY WPNS platoon, three rifle platoons and two leaders swept north and west to engage the out-posted grenadier platoon in 0805. A second prong of two rifle platoons and a leader swept south and west intending to engage the 0604 town from the south/south east. The remainder of the American forces took a central avenue of approach and moved due west to engage town 0604. The Americans moved close enough to spot town 0604 and patiently awaited for their artillery to take effect. It took a little less than an hour and the Germans were destroyed trying to defend the town. Meanwhile the Northern prong swept up, engaged the grenadier platoon by fire for thirty minutes and then moved in, assaulting the platoon and wiping it out in about 30 minutes. With two grenadier platoons destroyed the Germans were in no posture to secure town 0803 which fell rapidly to the combination of Bombardment and direct fire attacks.

A good learning scenario. It plays quickly with a good introductory mix of units to practice combined arms tactics and develop fire and maneuver techniques. Even though the German has limited force, by observing the American operation he can pick up a lot of lessons learned about combined arms. Fun was had by both players.

The Germans held out for several turns in the (I think) northern most town, delaying the American armor long enough for the German's Mark 4 to make it to the northern side of the swamp. This was achieved by at least two 6/1 die rolls on the assault table...6 for the Germans and 1 for the Americans. The Germans rolled that there reinforcements would arrive on the very first roll. The American armor was now useless in trying to take the bridge as the Mark 4 effectively stranded them north of the swamp. The only road that led through the swamp was blocked by the Mark 4. The paratroopers managed to infiltrate through the swamps to both sides of the town with the bridge. But again because of the hold up earlier and the early arrival of the German reinforcements the Germans were able to dig in around the objective. The Paratroopers made some good moves and lined up what could have been withering fire, but again, luck had them rolling 7s and 8s, while the German counter attacks were 3s, 10s and one 12! After a few more such uneven results and with the Germans firmly established the Americans finally just called it a day and gave up.

Battle: On the afternoon of June 12, 1944, elements of the American 327th Glider Infantry Regiment moved west toward Le Mesnil and took fire from German 352nd ID units in town and the woods just north of the village. By 1330, American OBA had eliminated a German mortar position in the town. The US troops advanced and took the south part of the town, killing Captain Geier in the process. The new German leader, Leutnant von Rhein, marshalled all remaining German units into the main part of town. The Americans had the town surrounded by 1430 and moved into an assault on the town by 1530. The Germans surrendered at 1600.

Analysis: This is a 12-turn scenario that links victory to hex control for the Americans and enemy step loss for the Germans. The Germans set up first in defensive positions in town or woods hexes; two units may also begin dug-in as an optional setup if allowed by the terrain. Both sides have OBA for support, but the American OBA is more powerful. The Germans have to wait until they can see the Americans to open fire, so the American strategy in this playthrough was to use the cover of the hedgerows until high-FP fire groups could be formed. As that was happening, a leader was positioned to spot for OBA on the German defensive positions; while the OBA was only modestly effective, it provided enough compromise. Then, direct fire and assault kept the Germans at bay, finally resulting in elimination of all combat units by Turn 12. Step loss totals were 8 for the Germans to 1 for the Americans, with the Americans controlling all three objective hexes for a victory.

Author	triangular_cube
Method	Solo
Victor	Germany
Play Date	2022-12-02
Language	English
Scenario	AirI014

This is another quick little Airborne scenario that has the Americans commanding a force that normally would be not at all noteworthy but feels exceptionally powerful compared to the rest in this module. They also finally have an American sized helping of OBA...

Anyways, Americans have to clear 2 town hexes and then the exit road hex along a single line. They dont have much time to do so, so they have to advance quickly rather than dong time consuming manuevers through the hedges which is the flavor of the day in this module. The Germans have to inflict step losses or stop the Americans but dont have much to do it with.

American set up and plan is rather straightforward, use the superior fire values and combined arms/engineer bonuses to sweep the towns. The Germans... play much like the Japanese in Guadalcanal actually. Your only hope is to set up as many fire chances to roll a snake eyes, or assault chances to roll a 6 as you can, and hope you build up the body count for VCs. Luckily they get 2 combat modifiers on their leader rolls, so they can make one gren a base 7 and the other gren and hmg red stack a base 11. They also set up a reduced gren and mortar platoon west of the towns with sight lines down the road, hoping to either stall part of the American force two or three turns to deal with them or suffer open sides bombardment in their staging grounds for the assaults. They leave the northern road exit empty, conceding it to the Americans if they can get someone out to claim it. More firepower, more base 7 and 11 column shots, more chances for X afterall.

They also set up the 50 in the northern town and hope to keep the tanks away or maybe get some lucky shots at them if they are used to assault the southern town. It ended up not getting any hits, so it seemed like an afterthought when writing this.

German plan worked due to the die rolls. Probably one of the only times they win this one. Ended up getting 6 step losses on the Americans, and holding the northern town, although it would fall in another turn or two if play continued past the turn limit.

I haven’t played a scenario from Airborne for years so I picked this one. It was pretty straight forward, the Americans need to take three objectives and the Germans need to eliminate five American Steps. The American have a much stronger and larger force including 3 times the off-board artillery and 3 to 1 in Infantry and just about double in everything else and a M4 tank unit as well but they only have 12 turns. I found that by risking stacks of three American units, with all that Direct Fire power, they could just stream-roll their way to victory in this scenario. Nothing too eventful here but a clear American victory!