First off, setting up this scenario is a little tricky. Map 1 from 'Afrika Korps' is to be used and not Map 2, but what is really frustrating is setting up Australian entrenchments only on the higher, 40-meter elevation hexes and still keeping them 3 hexes apart. This took some time and I am sure that there is only one way to do this but it was a great way to spend almost an hour and with the area I ended up having to place one entrenchment 4 spaces away from another just to fit 7 entrenchments in the margins.

The Australians have a heavy defense advantage in this scenario alone with those entrenchments along with 10 randomly drawn minefields placeable just about anywhere. They also start with two 25-pdrs for indirect fire and A.T. fire along with 2-pdrs and the much more efficient 6-pdrs for added A.T. firepower and crossfire advantages. Of course their only armor units are bren carriers and their foot units are small in number and have to be spreadout quite a way. Also the Aussies have no OBA and are totally reliant on their 25-pdrs for fire support

The Italians have zero cover in their long stretch to the ridge area and has to risk it with keeping all units loaded on trucks at least for the first turn, giving the Australians a +1 bombardment modifier and spotting from a 40-meter hex gives them a 28 hex spotting range with full visibilty. In my play the Italians got very lucky in their initial advance and only lost one towed 65mm and truck from indirect fire on turn 1. At 11:00/turn 3, I made two minor mistakes with the axis; first, my motorcycle leader had the 25-pdrs in spotting range and did not realize it until the next turn and they also blundered by moving a Sdkfz 222 armored car unit in range of one of the 6-pdrs. Both of these mistakes were quickly corrected.By 11:15/turn 4, the axis had suffered another two step losses and, even more upsetting, lost both a Maggiore and Capitano (none of which were LCs).

At 11:30/turn 5, Italian foot units have made it the ridge and already had one entrenchment surrounded with another threatened. The first minefields are also crossed but without any demoralization or step losses so far. At 12:00/turn 7, Italian OBA takes out one 25-pdr and disrupts the other, giving their attack a brief respite. At 12:30/turn 9, the first Italian trench assault begins and for the first time in this campaign leader characters go head-on against each other. At 12:45/turn 10, the last 25-pdr is eliminated leaving the Australians with no indirect fire support but time is running out for the axis attack. At 13:15/turn 12,the first Italian assault succeeds with one of the Aussie entrenchments taken and a lower moraled British Major LC is seriously wounded after just recovering from another serious wound received at Beda Fomm and will have to sit out another battle until the last in the campaign at Halfaya Pass. At 13:45/turn 14, a second trench assault begins but is instantly brought to a halt and minefields finally begin to start generating Italian step losses. At this point it is certain the Italians cannot win this engagement with their time almost up and they do what they can to inflict as many step losses as possible the last few turns. The PzIIIFs oblige them by risking A.T.fire and taking out the bren carriers and again, at games end, other than a few trucks on loan, the Germans take no step losses as before at El Ageila.

So Australia holds out and scores another victory for the empire but it is not an overwhelming one. Italy did a lot better than expected and claimed one trench along with a few step losses inflicted. In fact, had the scenario length (16 turns) been a few turns longer,they very well would of won it. They settle for 10 V.P.s as the Aussies ended play with 24 V.P.s. This still keeps Britain far ahead in the campaign again but Italy is not out of it yet. Of course the axis would have to win the last two scenarios but I am sure that is not entirely impossible with German armored support, but they will need to win very big to hope to win the campaign or at least lose it with some amount of dignity.