The Romanians set up entirely on Boards 17 & 18 blocking the choke points between the woods and the swamp. Each town was garrisoned and a "flying column" of Engineers and Inf mounted on trucks and the MTC company were the reserve. These setup out of sight in the villages and woods. The Romanians decided against a more forward "Hedgehog" type position in the woods but it could not be easily supported from the main line on 17 & 18. The idea being to delay the advance and pore in the OBA. Good thing for them that they decided to just keep everyone on the main line of resistance, anything less and the outcome would not have been as close.

For the US they decided to pretty much ignore the victory condition of eliminating all East Bloc forces west of the road. They could win by occupying all village hexes for a minor victory. It would be too easy for the East Bloc to dash north of the road on the last turn with a MTC or mounted INF as to deny the major victory. So why try going out of the way to eliminate positions that can be reoccupied at will?

It took time for the NATO forces to come up and when they did they naturally had to split up so as to drive on all the villages at once. This was necessary for two reasons: Number One; Time. It is on the Romanian's side. Number Two; Disparity of forces. The Romanians just have more units. So the US could not take time to reduce each village one at a time using their full force at each one. So they had to break up. The largest village fell only after a foxhole line in front of the village had been overcome and a nasty street fight ensued. While this was still going on the US sent a platoon of tanks and 2 Inf and a Lt. to capture the northern village. Due to the small size of the attacking force as compared to the defending Romanians they were able to hold out for many turns. None of this would have been possible had the East Bloc ATGs held up. They fired and knocked out a loaded HT for a three step loss to the US. In addition the other gun fired and knocked out another HT. They never fired again. Accurate OBA by the NATO forces silenced and then eliminated the biggest threat the East Bloc had going for it. The NATO armor could now move without fear.

In the end it was the southern village that decided the game. At first only two tank platoons had been adjacent to the village risking assault to gain the two column shift. Their efforts had not produced any result, mostly because there was no leader present to call in the powerful NATO OBA. Time was running out. Then finally a Lt. showed with a platoon of inf and a HT. Followed quickly by another tank platoon. These forces became available when the large village fell. On the next turn the US OBA rained down causing disruptions and demoralizations. Then the US assaulted with INF and armor and a good Capt. It took two turns but the Romanians finally melted away. This scenario went down to the next to last turn. This was the classic battle of quality vs quantity. I must admit I'm partial to that kind of match up. Marshall Stalin was right quantity does have a quality all it's own. These Romanians were tough to beat. The US were forced to gamble several times to gain position. One time they braved a 30 column direct fire shot to lever their way into the large village. It worked. The US passed a M check. But it could have been so much worse. A friendly fire incident at the northern village did not help matters for the US. Two full platoons and a leader routed away from the village never to return as a result. Luckily when the large village fell to the US at just about the same time and so the routed units were quickly replaced and a successful assault resulted.

This is a really great scenario. Both sides have some distinct advantages and weaknesses and the defensive options for the Romanians are many. The NATO tactics will be governed by the East Bloc setup.

Setup: The Romanians kept to the towns on Boards 17 and 18, waiting for the American attack.

Play: The Americans take an hour and a half to ride all the way across the map to the Romanian positions, with all of the foot units riding under the cover of the M3's. The Americans avoid the German AT guns and stroll right up to the Romanians in the smaller towns, and begin their main attack.

The Americans' fire is crushing to the Romanians and they begin to suffer greatly, losing almost half a dozen steps in a single turn. The Romanians' poor morale does not help them, and the next turn the Americans assault, clearing both of the towns with the hour. After recovering their few disrupted units, the Americans proceed on foot to the two main towns.

The Americans are unaffected by the Romanians OF, and quickly assault the Romanians, and bring up their tanks and half-tracks up and join the assaults. The assaults go very well for the Americans and by turn 18, the Romanians were scattered, mostly demoralized, and out of the towns.

Result: Major American Victory. The Step Loss Count stands at 1-36, with the Americans only losing one step.