Panzer Grenadier Battles on April 27th:
Arctic Front Deluxe #40 - Children's Crusade Broken Axis #14 - Târgu Frumos: The Second Battle Scenario 3: Sledge Hammer of the Proletariat
Army Group South Ukraine #6 - Consternation Road to Berlin #73 - She-Wolves of the SS
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Over the Neman
Lithuania's Iron Wolves #5
(Defender) Lithuania vs Germany (Attacker)
Formations Involved
Display
Balance:



Overall balance chart for LIWo005
Total
Side 1 0
Draw 0
Side 2 1
Overall Rating, 1 vote
5
4
3
2
1
4
Scenario Rank: --- of 913
Parent Game Lithuania's Iron Wolves
Historicity Alt-History
Date 1939-03-01
Start Time 06:45
Turn Count 26
Visibility Day
Counters 110
Net Morale 0
Net Initiative 1
Maps 6: 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8
Layout Dimensions 86 x 84 cm
34 x 33 in
Play Bounty 212
AAR Bounty 171
Total Plays 1
Total AARs 1
Battle Types
Inflict Enemy Casualties
River Crossing
Urban Assault
River Control
Conditions
Off-board Artillery
Scenario Requirements & Playability
Deluge Counters
Fire in the Steppe Maps + Counters
Lithuania's Iron Wolves Base Game
Introduction

Memel/Klaipeda itself lay some distance up the shore of the Curonian Lagoon from the mouth of the Neman River (the Memel River to the Germans), which formed the boundary between Memel-Land and German-ruled East Prussia. The river would be the first physical barrier to the German invasion, and the Lithuanians needed to stand there for at least a while if they wished to hold the territory.

Conclusion

The new German panzer force was not yet the powerful iron fist that would crush army after army, and the 4th Panzer Brigade was a pure tank force that would later be divided between the ad-hoc Kempf and 10th Panzer Divisions for the invasion of Poland. The Lithuanians could not keep the Germans from crossing the Neman, but they did bottle up their bridgehead and prevent a lightning advance into the interior. That stand would allow the Lithuanians to fight again.


Display Relevant AFV Rules

AFV Rules Pertaining to this Scenario's Order of Battle
  • Vulnerable to results on the Assault Combat Chart (7.25, 7.63, ACC), and may be attacked by Anti-Tank fire (11.2, DFT). Anti-Tank fire only affects the individual unit fired upon (7.62, 11.0).
  • AFV's are activated by tank leaders (3.2, 3.3, 5.42, 6.8). They may also be activated as part of an initial activating stack, but if activated in this way would need a tank leader in order to carry out combat movement.
  • AFV's do not block Direct Fire (10.1).
  • Full-strength AFV's with "armor efficiency" may make two anti-tank (AT) fire attacks per turn (either in their action segment or during opportunity fire) if they have AT fire values of 0 or more (11.2).
  • Each unit with an AT fire value of 2 or more may fire at targets at a distance of between 100% and 150% of its printed AT range. It does so at half its AT fire value. (11.3)
  • Efficient and non-efficient AFV's may conduct two opportunity fires per turn if using direct fire (7.44, 7.64). Units with both Direct and AT Fire values may use either type of fire in the same turn as their opportunity fire, but not both (7.22, 13.0). Units which can take opportunity fire twice per turn do not have to target the same unit both times (13.0).
  • Demoralized AFV's are not required to flee from units that do not have AT fire values (14.3).
  • Place a Wreck marker when an AFV is eliminated in a bridge or town hex (16.3).
  • AFV's do not benefit from Entrenchments (16.42).
  • AFV's may Dig In (16.2).
  • Closed-top AFV's: Immune to M, M1 and M2 results on Direct and Bombardment Fire Tables. Do not take step losses from Direct or Bombardment Fire. If X or #X result on Fire Table, make M morale check instead (7.25, 7.41, 7.61, BT, DFT).
  • Closed-top AFV's: Provide the +1 modifier on the Assault Table when combined with infantry. (Modifier only applies to Germans in all scenarios; Soviet Guards in scenarios taking place after 1942; Polish, US and Commonwealth in scenarios taking place after 1943.) (ACC)
  • Tank: all are closed-top and provide the +1 Assault bonus, when applicable

Display Order of Battle

Germany Order of Battle
Heer
  • Mechanized
  • Towed
Lithuania Order of Battle
Army

Display Errata (3)

3 Errata Items
Overall balance chart for 20

The reduced direct fire value of the Heer HMG became 5-5 starting with Fall of France.

(plloyd1010 on 2015 Jul 31)
Overall balance chart for 63

The morale and combat modifiers of German Sergeant #1614 should be "0", not "8".

(Shad on 2010 Dec 15)
Overall balance chart for 54

The movement allowance on the counters in Airborne is misprinted. It should be "3."

(rerathbun on 2012 Jan 30)

Display AARs (1)

Over the Neman
Author Juiceman
Method Solo
Victor Germany
Play Date 2021-08-22
Language English
Scenario LIWo005

This is a German assault on a defended river, to make matters more complicated for the Germans the river is major with two heavily defended bridges, the Germans do have an engineer company to assist in the crossing.

The Germans concentrated on the western bridge with one battalion assaulting the bridge, a second battalion with one engineer platoon on the left flank while the third battalion with armor support and the other two engineer platoons would try to cross on the right flank using the woods on the north side of map 3 as cover.

At first the Iron Wolves used their artillery assets to interdict the German advance on the bridge which caused a number of German units to become disrupted or demoralized, this slowed the main German attack but allowed the other forces to reach the river unscathed, but as soon as the Lithuanians spotted the engineers they switched their artillery fire to those units to try and stop the Germans from crossing.

This tactic worked until the Germans were able to spot the Lithuanian artillery set up in a field and started calling in their OBA to silence the enemy batteries, poor placement on the Lithuanians part but this was necessary to have their artillery provide cover for both bridges.

The Germans on the right flank were slow to cross the river early on, compounded by rolling high on their crossing dice rolls, as well as the enemy artillery fire, but eventually they a got most of their units across including their armor pretty much unscathed. Instead of attacking the heavily defended town to their front, this force moved along the north side of the river to attack the other bridge from the flank and rear. It helped that the Germans eliminated two Lithuanian AT batteries which allowed the German Panzers to roam free and interdict any Lithuanian counter attacks.

While this was going on the Germans in the center and on the left flank were finally able to cross the river, clearing the area of dug in Lithuanian forces to establish a good sized bridgehead.

The Lithuanians fought hard but could not stop the German from winning a minor victory.

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