Liberation 1944, scenario #30: Operation Bluecoat: One of the Best

Liberation has some good scenarios, the only reason I don’t play it more, is the dark maps. With that said, I setup and played this scenario as it looked interesting on paper. The British get a boatload of armor and a good amount of Infantry as well to try and take the city of Le Beny Bocage and exit 15 steps or more off the north edge along the road. The Germans get two smaller forces, one with a small amount of Infantry, armored cars and halftrack of various types and setup just outside of Le Beny Bocage and must try and rush in there before the British get too big of a foothold in it. The other German force consist of again of a small amount of Infantry and PzIVs of various sorts as well as a Wespe self-propelled gun unit that enter from the northeast on turn one.

The British have a higher Initiative and rolled well to get a good foothold into the major city causing the German to try and fight it out with their weaker armored/infantry forces. The British have a ton of Cromwells, three types in fact and an Achilles unit to boot and dispatch the German Armored Cars and Halftracks without too much difficulty and their large group of Infantry later battle for but conquer Le Beny Bocage. That freed up British armor to make contact with the second German Armored group and both sides take some casualties but the British numbers are tell and they eliminate this group of blocking German armor as well.

By the scenario’s end, the British have achieved both of their victory objectives and have lost only 12 steps, preventing the Germans from achieving any of their objectives, and the Germans have also lost 29 steps. This one was a Major British Victory. With that said, I still enjoyed playing this scenario.

Author	treadasaurusrex (Germany)
Method	VASSAL
Victor	Draw
Participants	NBGB
Play Date	2024-07-17
Language	English
Scenario	LIBE030

This was an exciting 5-session play-through play-through with the diligent & fast thinking, NBGB, leading maneuver elements of the British 11th Armored Division, on the attack and moving-to-contact from the west with the aim of both liberating the town of Le Beny Bocage, and to drive north to seize the critical bridge over the Soulevre River. I led a scratch force of of the defending German 21st Panzer division. The Boche drew a better set of leaders for this one, but the Tommies had superb morale and deployed an overwhelming force.

We made minimal use of the FOW (beginning on game turn 6), but did utilize the extended assault, smoke/illum, consolidation (for the Brits only) tank riders, and excess initiative optional rules. In addition, we used these four house rules: 1) Road Movement for Mechanized & Foot Units - All FOOT & MECHANIZED units may move on roads at the rate of 1/2 a Movement Point (MP) per road hex, just like MOTORIZED units, and 2) Standardized Movement for Mechanized Units - All mechanized units may move through clear hexes at a movement cost of only 1 movement point (MP) per hex, instead of 1 1/2. Add one to this cost if moving up, across, or down slopes hexes. These house rules improved both sides’ mobility and added to our enjoyment, 3) Tank Leader Forward Observation - Full strength, efficient tank leaders may spot for ALL artillery & air strikes in accordance with the normal spotting rules (8.0, page 19). Just as leader units may spot, this action does not require an activation, and 4) Enhanced Anti-Tank (AT) Gunnery & Hidden Emplacement - Unless prohibited by special scenario rules, ALL dug-in, entrenched, or town- occupying, towed AT gun units and Self-Propelled AT guns may fire in opportunity fire (OPFIRE) TWICE just like tanks in the standard rule set. For example: dug-in, German PaK 36 (37mm); PaK 38 (50mm); or British 6-pdr towed AT gun platoons would therefore be able to fire TWO AT shots per unit in OPFIRE situations. In addition, towed, or self-propelled, AT guns always begin scenarios in HIDDEN mode if allowed to dig-in per scenario special rules, or are entrenched, or town-occupying (please see Optional Rules for Hidden Units; Plotting Position; Revealing; and No Hidden Units Specified on Page 37).

The fast-paced, first session (game turns 1-3) featured a near-flawless, infantry-only left flank approach along the west map edge by the scrambling British, as well as a wide-swing, right flank advance by the Tommy armor. This column lost only a single, supporting mortar unit. The Germans feebly responded with desultory OBA and direct fire until the 3rd game turn when a probing Cromwell platoon was halved by AT opfire on the margins of the 20-meter hill in the SE quadrant of Map 56. An overeager German panzer grenadier platoon in the open was eviscerated by an accurate British artillery strike on the slopes of the same hill, as the Brits sought to divide German AT fire with an array of moving tanks and AFVs.

Our bloody – and nearly decisive – second session (game turns 4-5) was a grim one for both sides with a combined step loss total of 18! The first 4 British tank units (16 steps) exited the north edge of the battle map during the 4th game turn. Of course, they went on to capture the crucial bridge over the Soulevre, and with luck, the nearby HQ of 21st Panzer. An exchange of relatively accurate long-range AT fire, and some superb OBA rolls resulted in multiple step losses, particularly for the Germans who lost 4 platoons of scouting halftracks, plus a Wespe SPH unit, another platoon of infantry, and a Pz-IVH outfit. The Tommies lost Bren and Cromwell tank platoons, a section of Achilles SPAT guns, plus a leader. Both sides lost initiative levels, but the Jerries lost 2 this session and ended at zero. The step loss tally was now: 14 for the defending Germans and only 9 for the advancing Brits. Tommy infantry slowly encroached on the 3-hex town on Map 56, while the majority of their remaining armor bobbed & weaved in the NE quadrant of Map 58, in the vicinity of the other 3-hex town. An additional British infantry battalion still hovered – out-of-reach, and untouched – on the west edge of the battle map.

The third session (game turns 6-9) was costly and another grim one that featured a high-maneuver, bloody shoot ‘em up all over the battle map, and a combined step loss of 14! The Brits took 11 step losses, mostly to long-range AT and adjacent-hex firefights. German armored units absorbed all of their 5 step losses, including their last armored cars, an additional SPW platoon, and a section of Pz-IVF2 tanks. The Tommies had superb initiative rolls, which helped them achieve several long-range, AT cross fires successes as the scrambling Jerries began concentrating their limited forces in available town hexes. A stubborn British 3-inch mortar unit was finally eliminated by a close assault in the SW corner of Map 58. The Tommies’ initiative level fell by 2 levels this session, and there were a combined 16 (mostly German) combat 7-die rolls thrown. A Sword of Damocles situation in the form of the uncommitted, but menacing, battalion+ British infantry force remained in their jump off position just off the west edge of the battle map.

Our fourth session (game turns 10-13) was a disaster for the defending Jerries with 7 step losses & 2 leaders eliminated. Both sides had their initiative reduced to zero due to combat losses, mostly thanks to adjacent-hex fire fights and long-range AT fire. By session’s end, the garrison in Le Beny Bocage was the only significant set of German defenders left, with a very mixed bag of units. Repeated Boche close assaults in the 3-hex village on Map 58 failed to dislodge the steadfast Tommies of the 6-pdr AT unit. Simultaneously, the stubborn Jerry defenders of the 3-hex village in the western half of Map 56 held out until the end of the 12th game turn, when they were overcome by a well-orchestrated, combine arms assault. As night fell, the menacing British battalion finally began their advance into the battle map and to the western margins of Le Beny Bocage. Another tough set of close assaults loomed

The fifth session (game turns 14-18) was another action-packed, high mobility, but low-visibility, shoot ‘em up with my very bold opponent. The Brits poured down the map board lashing the German defenders with endless strings of armor piercing and machine gun rounds, as they closed in to liberate Le Beny Bocage. The final 4 game turns were mostly composed of multiple urban close assaults and heavy casualties that consumed a combined 15 steps and 2 British leaders. By the end, the combined step loss was at 64 in this very bloody encounter, resulting in both sides managing one victory condition, and therefore a draw.

This was a gamey, unbalanced, but fun-to-play scenario in which the British side simply needed to streak from south to north and exit the battle map – without losing more than 15 steps – in order to achieve a minor victory. In our humble opinion, the victory conditions should be rewritten to specify that the town of Le Beny Bocage must be liberated by the Tommies, before they may exit 15 steps off the north edge – while not losing more than 24 steps – to achieve a major victory. As published, this one is best suited for SOLO play. We gave it a rating of 2 in shared play.