This was my first foray into 'South Africa's War' and I didn't have high expectations for Italy after reading the victory conditions and a few AARs of other's experiances with this scenario, but since it was only 12 turns long I gave it a go anyway.

The South African deployment is very specific with the placement of the 18-pdrs on two separate hills so likewise the foot units were divided evenly. The conditions for a major Italian victory seemed more obtainable than the minor conditions so I split the M13/40s up evenly to assault both positions at once in hopes of eliminating both of the 18-pdrs. It just seemed highly unlikely that either hill could be cleared of South African units in so little time.

The first four turns (09:00-09:45) pass by very quickly as Italian armor slowly approaches South African positions while 3-inch mortar rounds bounce off of the approaching tanks. At 10:00/turn 5, Italian armor is in range of AT capable units at the southern hill area but even with a crossfire modifier the guns fail to take out any tanks. In response,at 10:15/turn 6 Italian OBA is able to disrupt the 18-pdr at the south hill gaining a brief reprieve. The M13/40s aren't so lucky in the northern hill area and suffer a step loss from AT fire there. Then, at 10:30/turn 7, Italian OBA eliminates the 18-pdr at the north hill. This boosts Italian morale as there is only one more to eliminate for a major victory with 5 turns left. The tanks prepare to link up at the other hill but South African infantry units are close and furious enough to brave an assault before they can hit the road. Meanwhile, the 18-pdr at the other hill is again disrupted. At 11:00/turn 9, South African forces have left dug-in positions at both hills and an assault on "Ariete" tanks commences in the northern sector but is ineffective in the first round. Italian tanks then exit the assault hex unscathed. At this point the Italians have had incredible luck and a victory seems remotely possible.

At 11:15/turn 10, the tide turns. The remaining 18-pdr has recovered and cleaned it's sights, scoring a step loss on the southern attack force. At the same time, a second infantry assault eliminates another M13/40 step further north. The other Italian tanks counterattack to assist the reduced unit and get trounced, losing yet another step. At this point South Africa has met the requirements for a minor victory with 4 enemy step losses, 2 of those inflicted by infantry. Another 15 minutes passes with no results from either side. Finally, at 11:45/turn 12, AT crossfire eliminates a whole platoon of M13/40s meeting the conditions for a major victory with one 18-pdr intact. Italy spots for one last shot with OBA hoping to at least force a draw and are very close with an M2 result but it is not enough though the artillery unit is demoralized. Since the 18-pdr has already activated there is no chance of it failing a recovery roll and being eliminated and time is up.

I was really surprised at how this battle turned out and the Italians were close to at least achieving a draw all the way up until the last turn. Unfortunately the M13/40 tanks aren't very fast and weren't capable of out-running the Springbok infantry who made the difference between a major and minor victory. The tanks had to move in close to get direct fire results but were too far away from the road to make a clean getaway. I believe I would try a very different plan with the Italians on another go at it, perhaps sending only one platoon of tanks to spot for OBA on one hill position and making a brave charge with the 7 remaining tank units on the another hill position. Either way, I don't see this being impossible for an Italian victory, apparently others have been successful in their attempts. Also, the South African victory wasn't decisive until the last turn. I rated this a heavy '3', very close to '4', which is not bad. On a scale of 1-10 more like a 6.75. A good fast play that was over before dinner.

Ending step losses were:

Italy: 6 steps M13/40.

South Africa: 1 INF and 1 18-pdr.