Panzer Grenadier Battles on November 21st:
Desert Rats #16 - The Panzers Pull Back Desert Rats #19 - The Panzers Return
Desert Rats #17 - The Tomb Of Sidi Rezegh Jungle Fighting #7 - Line Of Departure
Desert Rats #18 - A Pibroch's Skirl South Africa's War #5 - Irish Eyes
Errors? Omissions? Report them!
Christnach
Battle of the Bulge #36
(Attacker) Germany vs United States (Defender)
Formations Involved
Germany 276th Volksgrenadier Division
Germany 987th Grenadier Regiment
United States 9th "Phantom" Armored Division
United States Army
Display
Balance:



Overall balance chart for BaBu036
Total
Side 1 0
Draw 0
Side 2 5
Overall Rating, 5 votes
5
4
3
2
1
3
Scenario Rank: 747 of 940
Parent Game Battle of the Bulge
Historicity Historical
Date 1944-12-20
Start Time 14:15
Turn Count 16
Visibility Day
Counters 60
Net Morale 0
Net Initiative 0
Maps 2: 10, 11
Layout Dimensions 56 x 43 cm
22 x 17 in
Play Bounty 91
AAR Bounty 159
Total Plays 5
Total AARs 3
Battle Types
Urban Assault
Conditions
Off-board Artillery
Terrain Mods
Scenario Requirements & Playability
Battle of the Bulge Base Game
Introduction

Following the failed American attempt to relieve the surrounded companies of 60th Armored Infantry Battalion, the new commander of the 276th Volksgrenadier Division ordered his reserve formation, 987th Grenadier Regiment, to continue the attack against 9th Armored Division. With the regiment went four precious assault guns, the only "armor support" the entire corps possessed.

Conclusion

The attack fell apart. While the 276th Division's new commander was straightening things out on the 19th, Combat Command A was doing the same thing. In short order the four wrecked assault guns marked the last attempt to widen the "bulge" at its southern base.


Display Relevant AFV Rules

AFV Rules Pertaining to this Scenario's Order of Battle
  • Vulnerable to results on the Assault Combat Chart (7.25, 7.63, ACC), and may be attacked by Anti-Tank fire (11.2, DFT). Anti-Tank fire only affects the individual unit fired upon (7.62, 11.0).
  • AFV's are activated by tank leaders (3.2, 3.3, 5.42, 6.8). They may also be activated as part of an initial activating stack, but if activated in this way would need a tank leader in order to carry out combat movement.
  • AFV's do not block Direct Fire (10.1).
  • Full-strength AFV's with "armor efficiency" may make two anti-tank (AT) fire attacks per turn (either in their action segment or during opportunity fire) if they have AT fire values of 0 or more (11.2).
  • Each unit with an AT fire value of 2 or more may fire at targets at a distance of between 100% and 150% of its printed AT range. It does so at half its AT fire value. (11.3)
  • Efficient and non-efficient AFV's may conduct two opportunity fires per turn if using direct fire (7.44, 7.64). Units with both Direct and AT Fire values may use either type of fire in the same turn as their opportunity fire, but not both (7.22, 13.0). Units which can take opportunity fire twice per turn do not have to target the same unit both times (13.0).
  • Demoralized AFV's are not required to flee from units that do not have AT fire values (14.3).
  • Place a Wreck marker when an AFV is eliminated in a bridge or town hex (16.3).
  • AFV's do not benefit from Entrenchments (16.42).
  • AFV's may Dig In (16.2).
  • Open-top AFV's: Immune to M, M1 and M2 results on Direct and Bombardment Fire Tables, but DO take step losses from X and #X results (7.25, 7.41, 7.61, BT, DFT). If a "2X" or "3X" result is rolled, at least one of the step losses must be taken by an open-top AFV if present.
  • Closed-top AFV's: Immune to M, M1 and M2 results on Direct and Bombardment Fire Tables. Do not take step losses from Direct or Bombardment Fire. If X or #X result on Fire Table, make M morale check instead (7.25, 7.41, 7.61, BT, DFT).
  • Closed-top AFV's: Provide the +1 modifier on the Assault Table when combined with infantry. (Modifier only applies to Germans in all scenarios; Soviet Guards in scenarios taking place after 1942; Polish, US and Commonwealth in scenarios taking place after 1943.) (ACC)
  • Tank: all are closed-top and provide the +1 Assault bonus, when applicable
  • Assault Gun: if closed-top, provide the +1 Assault bonus, when applicable
  • Tank Destroyer: do not provide the +1 Assault bonus, even if closed-top (SB)
  • Self-Propelled Artillery: do not provide the +1 Assault bonus, even if closed-top (SB)
  • Anti-Aircraft Weapon Carrier: apply a -1 modifier to an air attack if within three hexes of the targeted hex (15.14).
  • APC – Armored Personnel Carrier: These are Combat Units, but stack like Transports. They can transport personnel units or towed units. They are not counted as combat units for the +1 stacking modifier on the Direct Fire and Bombardment Tables (4.4). They may be activated by regular leaders and tank leaders (1.2, 3.34, 4.3, 5.43). They do not provide the +1 Assault bonus (ACC).
  • Armored Cars: These are Combat Units. They are motorized instead of mechanized. All have their own armored car leaders, who can only activate armored cars (6.85). Do not provide the +1 Assault bonus (ACC).
  • Reconnaissance Vehicle: 8.23 Special Spotting Powers Both foot and vehicle mounted recce units (1.2) possess two special spotting abilities. The first ability is that they can spot enemy in limiting terrain at one hex further than the TEC specifies for other units and leaders. For example, an enemy unit in town can normally be spotted at three hexes or less, but a recce unit can spot them at four hexes.Their second ability is that they can place a Spotted marker on any one enemy unit they can spot per turn, just as if the enemy unit had "blown its cover" by firing. Such Spotted markers are removed as described earlier.

Display Order of Battle

Germany Order of Battle
Heer
  • Mechanized
United States Order of Battle
Army
  • Motorized

Display Errata (3)

3 Errata Items
Overall balance chart for 20

The reduced direct fire value of the Heer HMG became 5-5 starting with Fall of France.

(plloyd1010 on 2015 Jul 31)
Overall balance chart for 63

The morale and combat modifiers of German Sergeant #1614 should be "0", not "8".

(Shad on 2010 Dec 15)
Overall balance chart for 25

The M18 has a special rule in Battle of the Bulge but it applies globally: "A two-step M18 unit can fire one anti-tank shot and move half its movement allowance (retain fractions) in a single impulse. The order in which it does these two actions is the player's choice."

(Shad on 2010 Dec 15)

Display AARs (3)

Fields Littered With Enemy Dead
Author thomaso827
Method Solo
Victor United States
Play Date 2015-12-20
Language English
Scenario BaBu036

My second game in my own little Bulge Fest, this scenario has a battalion + of German grenadiers with a single StuG IIIG unit, 50mm and 75mm AT guns, 2 mortars and 30 column total of OBA. US troops are holding the large town on board 11 (hills dont exist so lines of sight/fire are pretty clear) with a company of combat engineers, a single infantry platoon, 3 M-7 Priests, a Sherman company, an M-8 scout, a Scott SP 75 howitzer, an M-5 Stuart,M-15 & M-16 AA halftracks and 2 M-18 Hellcats. I rolled an awful lot of 8s in this and the last game, when firepower should have been wiping Grenadiers out all around, but the Germans approached from both woods on board 8 trying to get to the town from one or the other. Germans in the northwest fared slightly better, coming to grips with and taking the single town hex in the woods west of the big town, chasing off the M-15 that had been holding that town and then moving through the woods to assault the M-15 and M-5 that it had stacked with, finally eliminating the M-15 before being decimated by the M-16 in the next hex. The troops approaching from the northeast ran into fire from the M-7s very quickly, and then fire from everything on the edge of town as they got closer. The German AT guns stayed in the southernmost town hex on board 10 where they could just manage shots at the Shermans, finally taking a single step of them before the Shermans fell back, but it wasn't much of a victory as the StuG III lost both steps. German troops and leaders were falling all over the fields between the northeast woods and the town. As one stack got in position to assault, the defender dice suddenly got hot and all leaders and half of the units in the stack died on more than one occasion. Suddenly the majority of surviving German leaders were trying to rally in the woods on board 10 as small stacks of leaderless troops slowly fell back to what little cover the light woods gave. With the Germans having lost over half of their starting force and the US having lost just 8 points, I called the game, US victory. Good game.

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Germans were lacking
Author campsawyer
Method Solo
Victor United States
Play Date 2010-01-01
Language English
Scenario BaBu036

This scenario is one that portrays the very end of the bulge expansion. The Germans have no more units to attack so they scraped together as much as they could, but with limited armor any attack would require alot of infantry that the Germans did not have. So from that respect this is historically accurate, but in my play there is not much the Germans could do. They must assault a town that is heavily defended with a mixture of armor units. But without infantry AT weapons the German infantry needs to group and assault. The Americans have good Op fire capabilities. From my old notes the Germans got wiped out just trying to get close to the town. The nine German steps were loss by turn twelve without even getting close to the town. So historically I give it a 5 but game wise a 1. This would also be a good one to try again with infantry AT capabilities.

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Christnach
Author dreierj
Method Solo
Victor United States
Play Date 2019-01-03
Language English
Scenario BaBu036

In this scenario, the German must take two or more town hexes on Board 11 (south town). The US must eliminate nine or more German steps. The German has little time, and must make a direct attack without the benefit of cover. The US can’t move until a German unit is within three hexes of a US unit.

As the Germans approached, they were spotted, and soon they were being shelled by M-7 Priests. Meanwhile, long-range fire by US M-18s resulted in the destruction of half of the STUGIIIs. In only 30 minutes, the German had lost four steps.

The persistent Germans captured the northern hex of the town by 1545, but at significant cost. By now, they had lost 12 steps, which satisfied the US victory conditions. Many demoralized Germans were scattered north of the town, and the US was maneuvering to push the Germans out of the single town hex. Fifteen minutes later, the Germans were able to assault a second town hex, but lost the first one! The US was looking to reinforce the engineers battling the German assault. Meanwhile, American armor was moving to pursue the scattered German units in the north. The chances for the German to even get a draw were looking very poor.

At 1615, the surviving Germans withdrew. Their forces had been decimated and most survivors were disrupted/demoralized. US forces had experienced comparatively few losses, and had established a strong line of defense north of town. The reduced STUGIII platoon finally recovered, but US armor dominated the battlefield. This was a quick US victory.

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