This game was played over skype against Alan Sawyer over 2 sessions. Alan picked this one, and after I sorted the countermix and read the VC's (and checking the win loss record on PG-HQ of 0 for 3 for Germany), I knew it was going to be a toughie. The Soviets needed to achieve 2 out of their 3 objectives to win. 1. Have a hex of the east/west road, 2.control all town and the bridge hexes, 3.stop 6 undemoralised steps exisiting east of the river.) I knew I wouldn't be able to stop the road being held, so it meant points 2 and 3 would have to be where I'd be aiming to prevent his win. As I had to attack this large force and cross a river (with steep banks) whilst under heavy bombardment, I decided the battle for the Germans here was mainly about movement and not stopping for combat ... To the battle !

The Germans, arriving from the west of the Luga River found themselves confronted by large numbers from the 1st Leningrad DNO. These militiamen were placed so as to cover the main road in to the area and were set in large numbers in the centre. They were also spread across a broad front and in depth due to a second line being placed further back to cover the approaches to the Luga and the bridge so desired by Raus. With little more than 2 companies of infantry to hand, 5 platoons of light tanks, some MG’s and scarce artillery support, Raus determined on the following plan. The infantrymen would press east but far south of the bridge. This route would bring them into contact with few enemy, and what there were should be able to be brushed aside. This might also drag the beasts of Soviet armour that were the KV1’s in their direction too. Whatever happened, they were to continue pushing, cross the river and then attack the small village on the other side of the river. Meanwhile, the German light tanks were to then sprint east as well, but directly at the bridge and hopefully outpacing the Soviet tanks. Supporting this, but already setting off on their way, would be the 2 platoons of MG’s. These troops, if they closed with the bridge and its town would hopefully blast out any resistance.

At 0730, the German troops went forward. As planned, the infantry on the far southern flank began their advance to the Luga and soon encountered dug-in militiamen. A short gun battle ensued, and as hoped, resistance both weakened and also melted away in some quarters. This then allowed the attacking German infantry to filter through the first Russian line. Good officers helped in this matter. In the centre, the tanks mulled around and the MG’s began their slow advance to the bridge. Responding to the German breakthrough in the south, Soviet armour did in fact head that way, but their foot troops stayed in place, making sure the main road was not forsaken and therefore denying any fast advance to the enemy.

By 0915, though the German infantry pushed forward, they had suffered some losses (4 steps) as heavy Soviet OBA took its toll and other fire finished off whatever remained in a demoralized state. However, by this time, these infantrymen were now getting their jackboots wet as they began the tricky climb down the steep banks of the Luga and into the water. Russian losses were very light as the Germans concentrated on movement, though due to the militia’s brittle morale, they had suffered lots of disruption and demoralization. Kommisars found themselves running all over the battlefield shoring up morale.

As the infantry attack crossed the river, they made for the target village, determined to deny control of this to the enemy. The Soviets had by now sent their elite SMG platoons to defend here. An aggressive company attack led by the German Major busted through the dug-in defenders on the perimeter, and then, in a surprise double assault, one platoon, without any ‘star’ officers,made it into the village to contest it. Their remit was simply: ‘Hold on” !

The Soviets were now throwing everything at the troops that had made it across the Luga. Tanks, infantry, OBA, on-board artillery. One MG team managed to cross in the north, but the German tanks had found the advance far too hazardous and contented themselves with some long range harassing fire. A platoon of Pz38’s fell prey to a KV1 attack, but this was merely a sideshow. With German infantry breaking here and there, the officers in command did all they could to recover their troops and this guided them to hold their nerve… just. As time ran out, the Germans had just the requisite amount of men across the river and the lone platoon in the village, which, though demoralized at one stage, recovered to hold on. This was the slimmest of German minor victories due mainly to the fact that a disrupted reduced platoon survived a last second morale check. (SOV 10 steps, GER 13 steps).

I rated this a 3 and it only nabbed the '3' score due to the last turn last roll of dice finish that the result hung on. The reason is, as the German player, I found myself having to play a bit too gamey in order to stand a chance of the win. By this I mean that although in real-life the objective was the bridge, I found my main concern was about moving with little effort for a firefight, in other words, no engage and wear down the enemy. I also made sure to pack any '2' moraled leaders with those moving troops to help hold morale for their advance. Then, once across the river, just make sure that something gets in a town (which a platoon did in turn 15 or 16 of a 18 turn game) and then hold on for grim-life. I also found myself placing my armour in positions of absolute sacrifice in order to draw away other enemies. (strangely, most of these sacrificial lambs survived ?) and even sent what was tacticly a pointless river crossing far to the north in order to add numbers of the number of steps across the river.

However, one game move was a classic and was the first time I used it. MAJ and INF in an assault hex next to the occupied objective village. On the other side of the hex, 2 x friendly INF outside the assault. MAJ activates his hex to FIRE and also calls in the 2 x friendly units from outside. The 2 x friendly units assault the DEM enemy in the MAJ's hex and eliminates them with the MAJ assisting them, but purposely leaving the activated INF in his hex OUT of that assault. Then, with his hex cleared, the activated INF that did not assault, assaults into the objective town and against the odds, survives. Why do it this way ? Because a unit can not jump from one assault hex into another assault hex and therefore, the hex they were already in needed to be cleared of the enemy so that it ceased to be an assault hex, thus allowing them to assault the town.