This was a decisive loss for the Commonwealth, especially for the 4/16 Punjabis and the 4/11 Sikhs. One of the prime reasons for this was the lack and loss of Commonwealth leaders, not to mention the task was to take 9 entrenchments with less than 10 step losses.

The set-up for the Italian/German player is very flexible with an almost unlimited amount of entrenchments to be placed over a vast amount of space between and on two hill areas. Also, the 20 points of minefields and 10 hex placements of barbed wire are virtually unrestricted so that you have a lot of liberty to custom-design your fortress.

The victory conditions for the Indian player require control of at least half of the Italian and German entrenchments so I placed 17 of them making the requirement 9. I separated the Italian 16th Infantry Regiment from the German 12th Oasis Company, giving them each their own hill areas to protect because they just plain don't work together well, (in history and PG) except in rare cases of combined infantry and armor support, which did not apply here.

It wasn't a bad start for the Commonwealth forces, in fact the Sikh reinforcements showed up right away and were the first to reach a hill area from the East. With the main force, coming from the West, the approach was cautious with the armored carriers and Valentine tanks as there was an 88mm to contend with on the Northern hill so they drifted Southeast to await an opportunity later when either the A.A. gun was eliminated (which never happened) or until sundown when they were out of it's spotting range. The 88mm was not the biggest problem, it would be the two Italian 105mm's combined with a 65mm that would inflict heavy losses on personnel units, paired with stacked 75mms for superior artillery fire results. These field pieces would keep the advancing Punjabis in a perpetual state of disorder through the whole battle.

At 14:15/turn 2, the first Indian step-loss came from Punjabi units attempting to infiltrate the German hill by the 88mm there and then at 14:30/turn 2, the first Sikh loss would come from HMG opportunity fire there also. The 12th Oasis Company were not giving up their treasured A.A. gun and would continue to fight fanatically to protect it.

Further South, advances were being made made toward the Italian hill positions but once at the base of the hill they were starting to become a disrupted and demoralized mess. Soon they gathered to make their first assault attempt when at 15:45/turn 8, tragedy struck. The British Colonel leading the attack was killed resulting in catastrophic loss and decapitation which then, in turn, caused another INF step loss from a second round of morale checks! All around and in every direction, things just continued to get worse for the Commonwealth forces. None of the ENG units had a chance to be of much use and the one unit that was actually able to make it to the minefields was rewarded with a step-loss uncovering a 3-pointer then retreated and stayed demoralized for the duration of the battle. To make matters worse, the highest ranking VCO, the Subedar Major was killed leaving Sikhs on the verge of an assault leaderless for some time.

By 17:15/turn 14, one of the Italian 105mms had been knocked out but other than that no ground gained on the Southern hill. At 18:30/turn 19, the first assault on the German hill began but that got bungled from friendly artillery fire though one step of German INF was eliminated in it's duration. By 19:15/turn 22, victory was deemed impossible by British command and while there were still less than 10 step losses the only way to keep this from being a total loss was to push for a stalemate. Assaulting troops prepared to pull out of a failing assault and escape while visiblity was low but the 12th Oasis Company was having none of that and at 19:45/turn 24, they gained the initiative and counterattacked, pushing Indian step losses over 10 steps. Two hours/8 turns later it would all be over; a decisive Italian/German victory and no entrenchments taken.

In conclusion I rated this scenario a 4 out of 5 because while it seemed to favor an Italian/German victory from the set-up alone it was a fun play almost entirely through even when it was deemed a certain defeat for the Empire. Once again, after having played 14 scenarios from 'Desert Rats' I have had not one of them result in a draw, unlike 'Afrika Korps'. These Desert war battles are very decisive. Now, as it sits in campaign perspective, I have 7 Commonwealth wins and 7 Axis wins. The next scenario, #22- "We are Omnipotent", New Zealand makes it's debut and it will most likely be campaign a tie-breaker. The stats say it is unplayed so sure to give another AAR in it's conclusion.

Author	triangular_cube
Method	Solo
Victor	Draw
Play Date	2023-03-03
Language	English
Scenario	DeRa021

This is another one that just doesn't work as the VC's don't drive conflict between the two armies, in addition to the gratuitous amounts of entrenchments.

Italians/Germans set up on two hills, and can deploy an entrenchment wherever they go, Indians need to clear out half... so the Italians/Germans set up one unit per hex on the hills with plans to consolidate later or just sitting tight depending on what the Allies do, setting up 31 entrenchments. Allies now need to clear 16 entrenchments to win... oh, also the Axis have 20 points of minefields and 10 hexes of wire.

To complete this gargantuan task, the Indians have... a battalion of infantry and a bunch of Valentines. They also get a bunch of APCs, but these will die immediately in the face of the Axis artillery on the hill, including an 88. Valentines won't fare that much better to be honest. Seeing no chance of success to a nearly comedic degree, the Indians don't advance, and dig themselves in on open ground on board entry. Playing for the draw, as that is their best result possible. Axis, seeing they will have to attack themselves against the large amount of armor and into the face of those APCs, also sit tight, and play for the draw.

End result is a draw. Same exact problems as #20 which is pretty similar. I really do "olay to win" when there is some chance, even remote of success rather than play for the draw. but come on, this is nuts. There isnt anything to play here.

Author	treadasaurusrex (Germany, Italy)
Method	VASSAL
Victor	Draw
Participants	Sonora (AAR)
Play Date	2023-03-04
Language	English
Scenario	DeRa021

Alas, another unplaytested, unfinished mess of a scenario that Sonora and I tried, and failed to make work. Not worth your time to even set this one up.

This was only a single session attempt to play this seriously defective product, with Sonora leading the Commonwealth (British & Indian) side, and me leading the defending Axis force. We didn't get far as the victory conditions were ridiculous, and there is no real possibility of a Commonwealth victory. All the Axis has t do is sit in their atop the two hills in their initial set of multiple entrenchments, behind lots of wire and minefields. This results in WAY too many strongpoints for the ill-equipped attacking Indians to clear in 25 turns. As others have noted, the only thing to do is for the Commonwealth to enter the board and promptly dig in -- playing for the draw and firing long range OBA every turn. Of course the Axis player has the chance to attack, but they play it safe as well, and chose to cower in their entrenchments.

This was a most unsatisfying scenario that resulted in a frustrating draw. It may be historically accurate, but it's a really lousy game. I give this one a very generous: 1.

Author	Sonora (Britain, India)
Method	VASSAL
Victor	Draw
Participants	treadasaurusrex (AAR)
Play Date	2023-03-04
Language	Català
Scenario	DeRa021

See Treadasaurusrex's AAR. This one was a truly crummy scenario.

I give it a 0ne, as it is not suitable for either shared or solo play as published.