This was a great scenario, lots of units on a medium board, diverse objectives. The SS had a reinforced regiment with which to do 4 things: capture a small town, occupy a point on the north-south road, exit 20 steps off the far edge, and don't lose more than 20 steps doing it. The Soviets had about half as many Guards troops to stop them, with reinforcing battalions of RKKA T-34s and SMGs arriving at some point.

The Soviet defense placed a minefield covering the southwest approach to the town, and a mix of 76mm and infantry defending it. To the north they straddled the road with dug in inf and 76mms. Backing this front line were ATGs and ATRs in interlocking fields of fire.

The SS split their force into a battalion to attack the road position, and a reinforced battalion to take the town. They also assigned a few companies of inf to support their StuG company and Tiger platoon. The plan was to spend the first 3 hours taking the two territorial objectives, then devote the final 1.5 hours to exiting their troops. The tanks and ATGs were to bide their time in the middle, available to support either attack or to deal with the T-34s when they arrived.

That was the plan, and then they met the Guards. In the north, as the SS was working their way through and around some fields approaching the dug-in Soviets, the Soviets decided to spoil their attack by charging out of their defenses and meeting them at the edge of the fields. It was brave, suicidal, and ultimately successful. For the rest of the battle, the SS was hung up, gaining no more ground, but decimating the Guards in turn.

In the south, as the main force approached the town, the 76mm opened up on the towed ATGs and wiped most of them out. Some infantry moved in to try to silence them, but they held on. For the rest of the battle. They were literally the last unit rooted out 4 hours later. One battery of ATGs tied up a huge variety of SS forces, and inflicted losses on their tanks when they tried to get in on the fight. At the south end of town, a company of infantry and SMGs held out for nearly as long, stopping every attack cold and holding morale remarkably well as they were slowly worn down.

The Soviet reinforcements were almost catastrophically late in arriving, and even when they did they were nearly wiped out in stopping the last desperate drives of the SS. The Tiger, which had been step-reduced in a dramatic assault by the town defenders that also claimed half the StuGs, was finally shot down in a blaze of glory, literally surrounded by tanks and ATGs on all sides and at ranges up to 2 kilometers.

It was apparent early on that casualties were mounting too fast for the SS, and they were having so little success in taking their objectives, that I never really doubted the Soviets would get at least a minor victory. But thanks to the final desperate attacks by the RKKA reinforcements, they achieved a major victory.

Great game, but tough for the SS. They need to play a bit more cautiously, look for the flanks, and keep up a steady stream of exiting forces, rather than waiting for the end.