Setup: The Soviets crowded the road, hoping to discover the Bradenburgers, and placed two INF's in the bridge, with a 10-0-1 LT. The Germans setup the 8th on the far left, prepared to mobilize, with the INF and HMG's in the SPW251's. On turn 1, the Bradenburgers passed through four different units before reaching the bridge, each times rolling less than a 6 on the discovery roll. when they reached the bridge, and the Soviet rolled for discovery, they rolled well, ousting the German commandos. The assault began immediately, with the Germans rolling a 5 on the 24 col, destroying one INF, killing the leader, and demoralizing the second INF. The 8th rolled up, and dumped the infantry off, withstanding the futile OF of the Soviets. They assaulted the next turn, quickly destroying two steps, and disrupting many more. The Bradenburgers finished off the the last INF in assault, while the 8th dealt with the remaining forces along the road. After three more turns, the last of the Soviets had been killed.

Result: German Victory

Scenario Rating:4/5

I suppose this one comes down to a few very crucial dice rolls. I set up the modest Soviet force strung out along the road and bridge as checkpoints and the Brandenburgers decide to go off-road to avoid the first one. That must of aroused some suspicion as to why a "Soviet" truck would avoid a checkpoint. The commandos roll up onto the second checkpoint adjacent to the bridge hex and then they are found out on the first attempt when a "6" is rolled. They must of got the password wrong or not of spoken very good Russian -they were caught! A first attempt at blowing the bridge fails. The next turn the Germans get the intiative easily and the commandos assault. It seemed as if they would blot out the the 3 steps of Soviet INF easily as the KDO units has a direct fire value of 7 combined with a 10-2-1 rated LT, along with two more shifts on the assault table pushing it up to the 24 column. The Germans only roll a "1" failing to eliminate any steps though one reduced Soviet INF is demoralized. A second attempt at blowing the bridge fails as the 8th Panzer units continue to advance forward to support the burgers. Soon the Soviets are able to reinforce the assault hex just in time with HMG units and keep the commandos bogged down. A third attempt at blowing the bridge fails. The next German assault is more effective but has still failed to clear the hex of all Soviet steps and then it happened, on the fourth try the bridge was blown - a rare Soviet victory on the 5th turn.

With only five more turns to pass I finished this one off just to see what could be done with the remaining time. Sure enough on the 6th turn the road hex was cleared but no more bridge so German units begin to mount for a river crossing while the few remaining and demoralized Soviets flee to the town to rally. In a desperate attempt to redeem themselves the Brandenburgers are one of the first units to cross the river and paired with a SPW251 they rush into the town but time was up and they never got to make another assault. By the scenario's end only half the German force had made it across the river.

So I went into this one expecting very little from previous ratings and AARS and it turned out to be quite a surprise. Once the commandos were found out on the first attempt I knew the Soviets had a chance but figured that the one checkpoint would get rolled over on the first attack. So it really came down to lucky rolls for the Soviets and a blunder of a first round assault for the Germans. Go figure that a "1" would get rolled on the 24 assault table, it just wasn't mean't to be on this attempt. Most people will surely win playing the Germans as likely the commandos will make it to the bridge in time before it is blown. I suppose that if the Germans had won this one I may have rated it lower and wrote it off as a total bore. For a 10 turn length and easy set-up I don't think there is much to complain about though it is arguable that the scenario is broken in a few places. I definitely got a "4" out of it for a fast-moving solo play but as other's have suggested not much for competitive play as it is really dicey.

The Soviets set up to block the German advance rather than to hold the bridge. The German Kommandos made it to the bridge without being discovered and then dismounted. The Soviets counterattacked, it the Germans got enough units to hold the bridge, which the Soviets could not get back. German victory.

Panzer Grenadier: Eastern Front by Avalanche Press. Scenario #14 The Brandenburgers 26 June 1941 0900 hours (end of engagement). The Soviets fought hard but really never had chance. Called on turn #9 of 10 as the German victory condition (occupy the bridge and control the adjacent road hexes) had been met, with no chance for the USSR to change the out come. Losses were relatively light on both sides (picture #2 and 3). Disruption, demoralization, and poor leadership ruled the day. The USSR had multiple opportunity (4 attempts) to blow the bridge but failed to do so. The KDO platoon ruse worked, but they were eliminated while trying to secure the bridge. That was the high light of the Soviets day. It was all down hill from there. The German infantry secured the flanks and pinned the soviets down while the Pzr38's stormed the bridge and the armored cars dealt with the AT gun. One armored car step was lost during that skirmish. German losses were 1 armored car step, the KDO platoon, a half track, a truck, and an AT gun. Soviet losses were the Captain, an AT gun, a heavy MG platoon, and a platoon + 1 step of Infantry. Panzer Grenadier is a great series and game system.

Author	t1M0t8yk
Method	Solo
Victor	Soviet Union
Play Date	2022-01-23
Language	English
Scenario	EFDx014

It was a rare one that went down to the wire. I used the original victory conditions; no modifications required. It's a bit unclear where to set up the commandos. I thought common sense would say with the other German units. Given the close result that definitely seems the intention.

It took four turns for the Brandenburgers to reach the bridge, which was defended by one full-strength and one reduced-strength RKKA platoon. They were not discovered so the Brandenburgers ambushed the bridge defenders. Most other Russians were deployed east of the bridge and south of one of the board 3 forests. They pulled back as soon as they could then activate to defend the three critical hexes. The 8th Panzer division elements moved up over the course of the next couple of turns.

The commandos won the bridge assault, although they did take a step loss. They were soon joined by the armored cars and tanks while the other German infantry closed to assault the other RKKA. The victory hex east of the bridge became the critical one. The Reds managed to reinforce it, and the Germans simply ran out of time before finishing them off.

I played this one in Panzer Grenadier and since I was so surprised at how the Sneak Attack scenario had changed I wondered if this one would be substantially different. The Soviet strategy was essentially the same, string out on the road to "find" the Brandenburgers before they reach the bridge. The ability to win the game still hinges on keeping the Brandenburgers from getting to the bridge, which boils down to several die rolls. In this case I found them while they were still three hexes away from the bridge.

I had three chances to blow the bridge and came away empty. By that time the Germans had pierced through the defenses and been able to assault the bridge.

While this is not a particularly memorable scenario it is very quick and kinda quirky, plus you get to use the KDO unit in Eastern Front which is kinda fun. All in all, not a bad way to spend about 30 minutes.

This is not really suited for competitive play, so is recommended primarily for solo play.

The Battle - 0700

We left elements of the 8th Panzer Division behind as we approached the Dvina River bridge. The Soviet uniforms were itchy as our truck bounded along the road.

We passed some SMG platoons who seemed to take no notice of us. I assume they just thought we were returning from the front.

We got to the bridge and disembarked from the trucks. The Soviets got suspicious so we opened fire and took out half the infantry platoon. We stopped the Soviets from blowing the bridge and within minutes the armour and APCs of the 8th Panzer had arrived.

The fighting was swift and fierce, but the Soviet SMG platoons were too far forward and were swamped by the 8th before they could effectively react.

Some reinforcements attacked us from the east while we were finishing off the Soviet infantry. We lost about half of our men, but soon had the Soviets running back to town. It was about 0800.

The 8th Pz sent a couple infantry platoons after the Soviets while we tended our wounded and began to remove the explosives from the bridge.

Within half an hour, the 8th informed us the area was clear. A handful of Soviets were holed up in a small warehouse in town, but were expected to surrender as soon as the Panzers rolled in.

Aside from the loss of half my commandos, the operation was a complete success. About 150 Soviets were captured or killed.

Lt. Von Trapp, Brandenburg Detachment

Aftermath

An interesting situation and a very quick scenario to play. As noted, the Soviets may have done a bit better had their SMG platoons clogged up the road. Only for the purpose of slowing down the Panzers. There was plenty of time available for the Brandenburgers to advance.

Scenario Rating 2/5: Interesting situation but quite “scripted”.

COMING SOON! - SCENARIO 15 – Zelva, The Soviet Break-Out.

Introduction

This seems like it would be an interesting scenario, depicting as it does a very difficult situation to model in a wargame. Special Forces operations seem to fascinate wargame developers and players of modern video games, but the difficulties of modeling Special Forces operations is that, conventionally speaking, they are terribly weak when compared to the units they are assaulting. Here was a chance to see what the strengths and weaknesses of a Special Operations unit are, balancing superb unit morale and concentrated firepower with the age-old equation of numbers and time; there are reasons line Generals like Schwartzkopf are dismissive of Special Forces, and the math at the heart of a wargame engine is one of them.

Scenario Note

We played this scenario with Brandenburgers' set-up with 8th Panzer, as that is our usual go-to Rule when a Scenario omits precise set-up details for a following unit (it sometimes happens). The lack of Engineer units prohibits units crossing the River, regardless of the crossing numbers given in the rules. This play is the one for which this AAR and the Scenario Rating is given.

If the Brandenburgers are made to assault the bridge on the first Turn, or if 8th Panzer is prohibited from moving until the Turn after the Brandenburgers assault the Soviet bridge garrison, a much more exciting game is had.

The Plans

For the German Player, the plan is simple: hang on till 8th Panzer reaches the bridge and can reinforce the assault. For the Soviet Player, everything depends on the set up. The SMG and HMG units must be as close as possible to the bridge, and stacked. The 82mm and HMG must be dug-in and positioned to bring fire into the bridge hexes, even if they are under assault. The SMG platoons must be as close as possible to the bridge.

The Game

Was surprisingly unexciting. The German strategy, which had the virtue of being tailored to the Special Forces' needs rather than the Regular Army's needs---which is how things tend to work in real-world cooperative operations---worked to perfection. By the time the Brandenburgers had assaulted the bridge, there was no time left for the Soviets to do anything about it. 8th Panzer's troops poured foreward, although an SdKfz 222 platoon was wiped out by Soviet Anti-Tank guns firing from the far side of the river, at maximum range. The leade PzKpfw 38(t) troop was also hit, suffering losses and falling back in disarray. The German Infantry dismounted, and the SPW 251/1s sped foreward to supress the Soviet 45mm ATG. The Soviet gunners showed remarkable discipline, and hit another Pz. 38(t) troop, knocking out several panzers. This turn of events slowed the German advance, putting a little caution into 8th Panzer's advance, but the ATG crews' elan was ultimately futile, the superior morale and firepower of the Brandenburgers overwhelming the small bridge garrison before the remaining Soviet units could reach it. The 45mm Anti-Tank gun battery was finally knocked out, allowing the SPW 251/1s to add their firepower to the assaults at the east end of the bridge, while the infantry and the now-reorganized Pz. 38(t) waited to cross the bridge to drive the Soviet infantry platoons back. Time ran out for the Soviets.

Conclusion

This is what happened, and I consider that a good wargame provides a framework for historical accuracy with a balanced chance of achieving realistic goals. A more aggressive Soviet set-up might prove intriguing, holding each hex with one unit to prevent overrun by 8th Panzer. With the 45mm in the Eastern-most hex, AT fire is still possible. Mostly, though, it takes Luck for the Soviet Player to win; one of the bridge units must Spot the Brandenburgers in the Westernmost objective hex, before the bridge itself; then it's a whole other world.

The Germans showed a fine understanding of the limits of Special Forces throughout the war, so I don't have as much trouble with this scenario as some do; the Germans seem always to have understood that Regular forces needed to be on the scene very quickly if the objective were to be held. Take 8th panzer out of the equation---say by prohibiting their movement until a Soviet unit employs Direct Fire (not Assault), or by having them enter the Board on Turn 5 while the Brandenburgers must start the game within three hexes of the bridge on Board 3---and it is a completely different scenario.

Played solo.

Weird scenario this one. Wattodoo with the setup? There seem to be no setup restrictions for the KDO unit so they could as well set up right on top of the troops on the bridge. To give the poor Russians a fairly fair chance I set up the unit adjacent to the bridge which I occupied with the 46mm and the 4-2 Inf + leader with the 1-step Inf adjacent to them. I also decided to put a SMG unit 3 hexes west of the bridge, not yet realising that the loaded KDO could drive around the guys and pull a nose in the process.. Well they, after all, would play a role to a certain extent, before becoming extinct ;-)

The rest of the support troops I set up in town as sort of tactical reserve. The Russian situation was hopeless from the start. The Germans received 2 segments at start and the KDO immediately drove up the bridge, "dismounted" off of their truck :-) and assaulted to totally paralysed bridge guards. Before they could say "Njet!" they lost an Inf step and the 46mm (6 on the assault roll). To make things worse, the far off sounds of the short firefight immediately triggered the 8th Panzer detachment. The triple-2's jumped forward and in no time the hapless SMG saw himself almost surrounded. They feebly tried to support the bridge troops next turn, but without much success. The rest is history, by turn 3 the Pz38t's drove up the bridge to support the KDO unit which had almost cleared the bridge by then. The 3 hexes which had to be in control were so 3 turns before the end of the scenario.

Conclusion: The Russians did not stand a chance from the start. A totally one-sided affair which immediately reminded me of scenario 2: Sneak Attack. If the non-bridge units could setup a little closer, maybe the Russians have a better chance.

Following the current setup restrictions the bridge can never be destroyed. Luckily so for the Germans as, although river crossing numbers are given, there's no Engineer unit in German OOB that could help them across (Major River) ;-)