Introduction

This is the classic battle of Barbarossa. Having played many games of PanzerGruppe Guderien, I felt I was familiar with the battle, but once again PzGr surprises. This was quite a different view of the battle, and while the outcome was essentially the same---German victory---the experience of it was quite different.

The Plans

For the Germans, the objective is a suburb of Smolensk and a key bridge beyond it on the road to Moscow. Time is short and defenders are relatively plentiful, but the 29th Motorized has superior mobility and the support of Sturmgeschützen. The Soviets have enough infantry and enough Anti-Tank guns, but no mobility to speak of. For the first time in Barbarossa, the Soviets have serious air support from the VVS; in this battle fighters and bombers of the Red Air Force range over the battlefield at will. Their attacks may be enough to disrupt or even blunt the German advance.

The Germans

Go with what works. One thing I learned in the desert was that Fire and Manoeuver is an extremely sound doctrine; what I am learning in the East is that it is a flexible one, as well. Once again, I will advance with fire elements to pin the Soviets in place while I prepare an assault into their flanks. My objective is the bridge, and nothing less. I mean to bypass the town if possible and make for the bridge. The slow-moving Soviet rifle platoons cannot keep up with me, and if, as I hope, they break from the town to try and hold the bridge, I will have them in the open where I can encircle and eliminate them. For me, speed and deception are the keys. As long as I can keep the Soviet Player focused on the town, I will be able to swing around him and roll him up. If he perceives my move to soon, he will be able to take steps to block it.

The Soviets

The Soviet player decided from the beginning that killing Germans was the way to win this scenario. IN his mind, the town was the trap he would pull my forces towards, using his air force to hit my troops in their trucks. But as is so often the case, he decided to hedge his bets and also play for time, deploying two infantry-AT gun teams along the road in front of the town, and the third AT gun in the woods to the North. He is counting on blowing up my infantry platoons with the trucks.

The Game

A tough fight on both sides. For once the Soviets have as many Leaders as the Germans, including lower-ranking ones. The two Rifle-AT teams were both led by Lieutenants, which necessitated there being dealt with, as they could move independently. Because they were not vital, however, I left covering forces and moved on; because they were sited to give mutual support, they were too close together and I was able to economize on that force. Still, it cost me time, and even though they were not dug in, they were unpleasant to deal with. I lost two half platoons of Infantry and a Truck dealing with the improvised roadblocks. I raced on with my main force, dismounting some infantry and my 37mm PaK-36 (one 37mm PaK-36 battery had been left in the large town to the West to prevent any Rules-Lawyering "retreat to conquor" moves). My HMGs and Mortars also dismounted. The rest of my force, the StuGs and three Infantry platoons, swung around the town and headed for the bridge. I swung south (the Soviet left flank), with the result that the Soviet 76.2mm battery was out-of-position to fire. Because their own troops had also masked its fire until too late, the hardest-hitting element of the Soviet defence was employed almost exclusively as a field gun, to little effect.

As hoped, the bridge was lightly held and quickly secured. An infantry platoon was left to hold it and prevent "retreat to conquor", while I surged back up the road to take the town. By now the Soviet's were in real trouble. Their roadblocks had vanished, both Leaders having been lost, and their 76.2mm battery was out-of-position until I actually moved on it in the city. Still, it hurt me, as did the constant attacks by the VVS. With the Soviets bottled up, it came down to casualties, because it was clear with all my StuGs still active that I could take the remaining Soviet town hexes. At this point, a bit of deception I had been practicing paid off.

My brother has a stratagem he often employs called "hey, look at this!". The idea is you wave your "good" hand, and when they look, and you hit them in the back of the head with the off hand. I generally eschew stratagems, because I don't think they work consistently, and I am very conservative (as a wargamer, not politically). But every now and then, a trick comes in handy. I created what appeared to be a powerful strike force a few hexes to the West and South of the town, and this drew the Red Air Force onto it, as I'd hoped, and brought down the fire of the 76.2mm. Having pinned it in place, my real assault group went in and quickly overwhelmed it. The Soviet Player had gambled on killing two Steps in the Truck, which would have taken me to eight Steps lost. Instead, I lost the 37mm PaK, which was one Step, and the truck, which did not count for Victory purposes.

Conclusion

A German Victory, with 7 German Steps lost and 11 Soviet Steps lost. A very tough fight, that came down to a better Leader pool for the Germans to draw from (superior German training), and very aggressive tactical employment of Fire and Manoeuver, which was unusual for me. A tense game, that was in contest to the last Turn.