FaoF033 
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Fighting the Fire Fall of France 1 #34 |
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| (Attacker) Germany | vs | France (Defender) |
| Formations Involved | ||
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| France |  |
1er Régiment de Hussars |
| Germany |  |
24th Infantry Division |
| Germany |  |
26th Volksgrenadier Division |
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| Overall Rating, 10 votes |
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2.8
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| Scenario Rank: 835 of 940 |
| Parent Game | Fall of France 1 |
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| Historicity | Historical |
| Date | 1940-05-23 |
| Start Time | 05:00 |
| Turn Count | 18 |
| Visibility | Day |
| Counters | 54 |
| Net Morale | 0 |
| Net Initiative | 2 |
| Maps | 2: 29, 31 |
| Layout Dimensions | 56 x 43 cm 22 x 17 in |
| Play Bounty | 101 |
| AAR Bounty | 165 |
| Total Plays | 10 |
| Total AARs | 2 |
| Battle Types |
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| Exit the Battle Area |
| Conditions |
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| Off-board Artillery |
| Terrain Mods |
| Scenario Requirements & Playability | |
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| Fall of France 1 | Base Game |
| Introduction |
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A period of relative quiet came to Stonne after the two-day battle there, and the French set about reinforcing its western flak: the Mont Dieu woods line along the Ardennes canal. Reinforcements included the 1st Hussards, the 8th Chasseurs and two regiments of the 1st Brigade de Cavalerie. the expected German attack on the canal line finally arrived early on the foggy morning of May 23. The German objective was to encircle the Stonne position and force a Major French withdrawal. Two infantry regiments moved toward Hill 276 on a 2-kilometer front, attacking the 1st Hussards after a nasty initial bombardment. |
| Conclusion |
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Defending the canal line was particularly difficult given the marshy ground and poor visibility. To the north, the Landrevie Escadron group held firm on the heights of the Mont-Dieu woods, cutting down more than 130 German soldiers advancing on their position. But the 1st Hussards were cut in two but the sheer weight if the assault, and another French group to the south was overrun. Elsewhere along the river and around Tannay, small French groups continued to defend the bridges and tried to hold the line in advance of a hoped-for counterattack. |
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| Armée de Terre |
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| Heer |
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| 2 Errata Items | |
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The reduced direct fire value of the Heer HMG became 5-5 starting with Fall of France. (plloyd1010
on 2015 Jul 31)
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The morale and combat modifiers of German Sergeant #1614 should be "0", not "8". (Shad
on 2010 Dec 15)
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| What's your hurry? Stick around a while. Get to know me... |
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2 battalions of German infantry with a company of engineers attached need to move across two boards. The French have one battalion of cavalry and two stunningly immobile HMGs to use to delay the Gemans. As can be seen in the database, no one has yet figured out how to do this for the French. I was excited to keep 14 German steps on the map (the French get 1 point for each step which hasn't exited by the end of the game). At this point I think that an early defense is probably useless. I tried it and all it did was cause losses. It might prove more worthwhile to set up several ambushes where the French cavalry can jump into assaults and tie up the Germans.. I gound the delaying action on the second board to be far more effective in holding the Germans from leaving too soon. The final score of my play was 50-16 Germans but avoiding the early destruction would help even the score out a bit. I still don't think that the French win, unless they can be hidden. I give this one a "2". |
| 0 Comments |
| The Grey Tide Rolls On |
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Others have pointed out that this is an essentially unwinnable scenario for the French, and I would have to agree. The Germans have 18 INF, 3 HMG and 3 ENG while the French have 10 CAV, 2 HMG and a 60mm mortar. Oh, did I mention the 48 points of German OBA each turn? It actually starts higher, and with reduced visibility at the start of the scenario, it's easy enough to position the French so that the extra OBA doesn't get used much. The Germans want to cross 2 boards and exit. The French want to stop them, by either killing them or just making sure they can't exit by the end of the game. So, what's the problem? The French are mobile and can keep getting in the Germans way, right? Well...no. The CAV are 3-3s, while the German INF are 5-3s. Even if the French set up blocking positions, the Germans can roll up to them and shoot them to death, or perhaps assault them to death. Or use artillery to blow them into little pieces. And the terrain isn't hospitable for charging. Lots of woods and swamp. I mean, it can be done, and 2 CAV with a leader fight on the 13 column with a charge, while 2 defending German INF with a leader fight on the same column. And normally the Germans are going to be in good defensive terrain. And that column shift for the Cavalry charge goes away after the 1st round of combat, so it's likely to be a 5 column (or worse) for the French against a 13 for the Germans after turn 1. Sure, this might tie up some German units, and there is enough time the the other guys can go around assaults. The Germans have 48 steps available, and get 1 VP for each French step eliminated and 1 VP for each step exited, while the French get 1 VP for each German step that doesn't exit. So, to win, the Germans need to exit at most 25 steps (for a 25-23 win) and that assumes they don't kill any French steps. y game ended up 49-17 for the Germans, as 3 steps died and 14 didn't exit, mostly because I kept them tied up in assaults too long (a couple were too far away to exit after fleeing from demoralization). The Germans exited 31 steps, and killed 18 steps of French (out of a total French force of 25 steps). And I know mine isn't the most extreme result. This is an interesting scenario, I just think it has unrealistic victory conditions for the French, hence the low rating. |
| 0 Comments |