This is a lopsided but fun scenario. Two NKPA armor/infantry task forces attack in parallel against a RoK infantry battalion. All four maps are used, and you really appreciate just how rough and hilly the terrain is. The NKPA objective is to destroy at least 20 RoK steps and exit 60+ steps from the southern map edge in 30 turns. There is plenty of time to accomplish this task.

One of my main tactical failings when I play PG is committing to an attack too early and trying to do everything too fast. I rarely take advantage of the full time allotment and use enough preparatory firepower before I get stuck in to assaults. In this game I committed to trying to use tactics that were more reflective of real world armies, in this case the infiltration/exploitation tactics that a NKPA army would use.

The RoKs were concentrated in the towns that stood astride the two north-south roads, two companies reinforced with HMGs and engineers in the large town to the west, one company with HMGs to the east. Both towns are in the southern half of the board, so the RoKs would make the NKPA come to them. To harass them on their way through the rough northern terrain, each town had a forward outpost in the hills to the north, a company in the west and an HMG platoon in the east, along with forward observer officers. There were also 2 casemates in the east, and some artillery and AT posts in the center of the board between the towns, where they had good fields of fire.

The NKPA attacked in parallel down both roads, leading off with a two-company attack down each road. I very patiently kept the bulk of my NKPA forces off the board for the first 8-10 turns, relying on these point companies to sweep the RoK forward positions and secure jumping-off points for the main armor/infantry forces to launch their assaults on the towns. In addition, I peeled a company-sized armored force with tank riders off the eastern attack force to occupy the artillery and AT positions in the center of the board, thereby cutting the RoK position in two and creating a breakthrough to sweep behind the towns.

The attack went off like a dream. The eastern force seemed like it would bog down when a whole company was thrown into disarray by a RoK artillery strike, but the 2nd company neatralized the HMG nest and began engaging the casemates. Unfortunately this would be a futile effort that would last the remainder of the game, but the casemates were effectively taken out of the battle.

The western attack was equally successful, rapidly occupying the 40m hill in front of the western town and evicting the RoK company that held it. In the center, the tank/infantry task force cleared the artillery and AT guns, then hooked behind the eastern town to completely isolate the defenders.

The main bodies of the NKPA attack had been moving onto the board during this action, but a deliberately slow pace and fog of war kept them out of the attack until about 3 hours in. At that point the western attack burst forward, with tanks and tank riders exploiting the gap in the center to attack the western town on its eastern and southern flanks. In the east, the narrow valley approach slowed the progress of the attack somewhat, but the breakthrough force in the center, cutting the defenders off from behind, prompted them to begin a withdrawal into the rough wooded hills south of town. Unfortunately, effective fire from HMGs and assault guns of the NKPA main body kept them pinned long enough for the main infantry attack to develop. Only scattered RoK survivors pulled back.

The western town was enveloped and defeated remarkably quickly. Having a battalion of tanks and assault guns ringing the town was most effective.

Ultimately the NKPA were able to achieve all their objectives with time to spare, and with no significant casualties. While this sounds like too lopsided a scenario to be fun, it was a blast. I find that games that are very closely balanced, while tense and exciting, often devolve into disorganized brawls. Every once in a while its fun to play out a game that recreates how an attack is supposed to proceed in theory. It can be very instructive, as I found it. In this battle, patiently using an infiltration/reconnaissance-in-force to probe the enemy before committing a powerful main attack at the weakest points was completely successful. It was a perfect demonstration of how a Soviet-style combined arms attck would work. It reminded me of similar situations in Eastern Front Deluxe (An Awful Morning) and War on the Equator (#2 I think) where a powerful combined arms attacker blitzes a thinly-stretched defender.

Hats off to Jay Townsend. Pusan and Saipan are my current favorites, and his designs are becoming my overall favorites in PG.