December 23, 1944: At the vital Baraque de Fraiture crossroads in the northern sector of the still-expanding Bulge, a mixed bag of US Army and Airborne troops – collected from whatever bits and pieces were immediately available – are about to get hit hard by elements of the 2nd SS Panzer Division. The Germans will be approaching from the east (a solo platoon of Panthers), west (halftrack-borne GREN, HMG and 81mm) and south (non-motorized GREN, HMG and 81mm, plus two platoons of PZ-IVH.) The Americans’ best armor, a platoon of M4/76, is placed in the light woods at the east crest of the large hill upon which the crossroads rests, anticipating the approach of the Panthers. The other US AFV’s – one M8 unit, one Scott unit, and an M-16 “meat chopper” halftrack – start under cover in light woods, hopefully able to move to where needed. (Due to the lack of coordination between the disparate fractions of commands, American units need to pass a die roll for voluntary movement, though they can fire and Assault normally.) At the crossroads itself, one Army INF and HMG, with the best US leader – a 10-1-1 Major – are dug in, and hopefully as the Germans get close a third unit will be able to join in; if the extra unit is brought in too soon, German OBA and mortar fire will get a favorable shift. The rest of the Army units support the crossroads, while the PARA units deploy generally facing the southern approach. On the western slope, 4 platoons of M3 halftracks await the enemy. And, as far north and as deep into the light woods as possible, the towed 105mm guns and the reduced M7 Priests await calls for bombardment support.

The Panther is the first to enter at 1600, and quickly loses a step to the M4/76 – but the Panther answers back in Turn 2, eliminating the long-barreled Shermans. The German approach from the west is met by the M8 platoon (able to move to meet it, unlike its co-hex Scott platoon), which uses the optional efficient AFV move/fire rule to take out a loaded SPW-251 halftrack as it enters; it then drops another loaded halftrack on Turn 2, and then an unloaded one, before falling to the Panther in Turn 4.The presence of the M8 leads the remaining SPW-251’s – except the one carrying the 81mm mortar, which spends a few turns sweeping around to the south of the hill to drop its cargo off adjacent to the foot mortars – to unload early. This gives the US M3’s a chance to blast the unloaded soft targets with DF, followed up by three M3’s assaulting a lone, demoralized HMG. Somehow the HMG not only survives but recovers, is joined by a GREN, and (after the GREN takes out one M3 with AT fire) the twain wipe out the halftracks

On the south, the 81mm mortars offload in a sheltered position, soon to be joined by the 81mm arriving from the west. Thanks to the deep snow, it takes a few turns for the southern GREN and HMG units to gain the crest of the hill’s southern slope, where they take some morale hits from the US onboard bombardment – though the M16’s only shot (after moving to that front) misses before the PZ-IVH’s remove it from the map. The Panzers then are able to move up to the Airborne lines for a couple of point-blank shots; these, combined with German OBA (2 x 16) and the now-gathered mortars (3 x 8), play havoc with the dug-in PARA’s, sending several to the rear in flight (and reducing three of them with follow-up bombardment.) Meanwhile some of the western troops have made their way into the US rear, assaulting the M7, Scott, and the 105mm as daylight wanes.

By the beginning of the 1730 turn (Turn 7), darkness has fallen. The only AFV support left to the Amis is the Scott, which is reduced and demoralized, well off in the light woods. The artillery support is engaged by German infantry, and the southern foot troops have closed in on what is left of the Airborne lines. And, by the time 1800 rolls around, the demoralized Scott platoon is the only non-infantry left to the defenders. The Germans combine direct fire, bombardment, and assault to wear down, (and encroach upon) the Americans. The crossroads itself – reinforced after dark by an adjacent INF platoon, relying on the -1 mod for darkness to counteract the +1 for 3 combat units – comes under attack, first by OBA and mortars and then by the two PZ-IVH platoons, which establish themselves at point-blank range. At 1900 the reduced Panther platoon (having aided some infantry in a just-concluded assault) joins the Panzers, and at 1915 the armor comes charging into the intersection for an assault, guns blazing. Initially it doesn’t go so well - the GI’s demoralize the Panther and disrupt a PZ-IVH before the armored beasts even get to fire, thanks to the “first fire” advantage of being dug in. (Still, one of the INF in the hex demoralizes, fails to recover, and flees.)

When the Panther flees, a GREN and leader join the crossroads fracas, only to see the GREN reduced and disrupted in the next round. Realizing that the assault is getting nowhere in a hurry, the Germans use a three-activation opening string on the 2000 turn to pull out of the hex (the reduced GREN screens the armored withdrawal then survives the parting shot from the remaining INF and HMG) then open up a blistering 2-hex point blank fire of small-arms and MG’s – 36 points. This flips over and disrupts both remaining US defenders; they recover in their activation, but at 1915 the opening German activation is a reprise of the previous turn’s withering direct fire. This clears the hex (including the Major in charge), allowing the Panthers, followed by some infantry, to grab the vital crossroads.

By the end of the 1915 turn, just two of the US defending groups – part of the original PARA position – are still Dug In to their original locations, several hexes from the crossroads. What’s left of the rest of the infantry is strung out, fleeing or egressing towards the light woods to the north, and almost all of them are disrupted or demoralized. Belatedly, the Scott platoon has fully recovered and advanced back towards the fray, just in time to greet the battered remnants. Clearly, the chances of the savaged Americans getting in any shape to try and re-take the objective – or to survive the massed German combat power in range to gather around the dearly-won crossroads – are just about nonexistent. Time to call the game, after 18 of the 30 possible turns have elapsed.

Fortunately for the 2nd SS Panzer, the sole condition of victory is to clear the crossroads of any non-demoralized Americans, and this has been done. The cost has been quote heavy, although the defenders have gotten the worst of it. The losses, in steps:

GERMAN: 12 GREN, 5 SPW-251, 1 Panther, 3 Leaders.

US: 10 INF, 2 HMG, 8 PARA, 4 M3, 2 M4/76, 2 M8, 2 M16, 1 M7, 1 Scott, 1 105mm, 1 Truck, 4 Leaders.

The sheer volume of German combat power in this one- with plenty of time and plenty of maneuver room, plus (for once) an edge in OBA (2 x 16 German, none US) leads me to think this is seriously unbalanced – yet I do know someone who has won as the U.S. The balance is the only criticism I have of this scenario – like the other Elsenborn (and Bulge) scenarios I’ve played, it is evocative, interesting and fun, regardless of balance.