In Consimworld,

http://talk.consimworld.com/WebX?14@@.ee6fd1c/4249

. Romanian's on defense against nine Soviet T-34/SMG combos + OBA + BM-13 (and a couple of recon units).

Boards are set as follows with long axis oriented N/S:

6 22

14(f) 10 (f) = flipped

Soviet victory conditions are, upon entering anywhere on north edge, to clear all roads on all four maps and all town hexes on boards #22 and #10. Twenty-four turns. Heavy mud conditions attain reducing all movement allowances.

Board Six: 2xINF dug-in each on road hexes 0514 and 1010. Board Fourteen: 2xINF on 40-m hill road hexes 0908 and 0609. Also 75mm-FG with spotting 6-0-0 cpt (for OBA) on 60mforest hex (range = 18). Board Twenty-two: 2xINF + 1xHMG in two-hex hamlet 0608 & 0708 with 9-1-1 cpt. 2xINF with LT in farm 0809. 1xENG + 1xHMG + 10-0-1 LT in farm 0914 (road hex controls entry to board 10). Also have 47mmAT guns in 0715 & 1115 (with 3 ATF, only real shot at a T-34 is with a x-fire bonus which is set up vs. road hex just to the north of 0914). Board Ten: 2xINF dug-in on road hex 0705. 2xHMG + 8-0-0 LT dug-in on 0706 (support fire vs. approach). Village holds LtC 9-1-0 + 2 INF in cross-roads hex and Heer 20mmAA + 50mmAT in 0809.

So rather than, say, one mutually supporting stronger grouping on each board, I have opted for a series of spread out road-blocks and town-hex holding positions in the hope of forcing the Soviet force either to split up or to spend inordinate time reorienting itself for multiple attack sequences.

It did occur to "hide" units in forests/hills requiring the soviet player either to off-road in chase or to leave "holding forces" to prevent ROM units from reclaiming a road hex at game end. This seemed a meta-gaming approach or an approach better suited for partisan activities such as scenarios in Sinister Forces.

Play:

The Soviet commander perhaps unfortunately had read his intelligence section's evaluation of the Romanian defense in this area. He didn't expect much resistance from the ROM 7th infantry. Sending his armored column with SMG tank riders south along the road on board 22, about half off-loaded to deal with the town in hexes 0608 and 0708. There was some desultory OF from the village and weak Soviet supporting OBA. The rest of the Soviet column headed west towards board 6 although slowed due to heavy mud.

After a second round of ineffective OBA and BM-13 fire, the Soviets decided to take the bull by the horns and move adjacent to the village preparatory to a combined arms assault. Little did they know that the captain leading the Romanians in this village had spent six months as a liaison officer with the Grossdeutschland division earning a German close assault badge: the OF was withering. The Soviet SMG platoons were savaged (rolls of '12' and '3'). After a mere 45 minutes of combat, the Soviets had initiated an assault in one town hex; eliminated 2 ROM INF steps; but at the cost of four SMG steps and several DIS/DEMs - the Soviet zampolit found himself busy. On the other hand, the attack against the eastern road block on the road on board six had gone well, with come OBA/DF causing compound morale failures.

The Soviet commander of the assault in hex was eventually shot for cowardice. Leading into combat an SMG+2T-34s+M3+subsidiary leader, an hour and a half of combat had not succeeded in dislodging a single ROM infantry platoon (read this as three consecutive '1' rolls on 18 or 13 cols followed by three more rounds of nothing greater than a '3'). By turn 8, the Soviets had suffered seven step losses, but had several other units, particularly in the assault, in poor-order. The Romanians had suffered likewise, particularly over on board 6, for a total likewise of seven step losses.

To make a sad story short, the Soviet player gave up the attack on board 22 and headed west to board 6 setting a few units to "seal off" board 6 from a ROM counterattack; cleared board 6 and off-roaded slow, sloppy trek south to board 14; eventually cleared the two road blocks on board 14.

Game ended in the Soviets controlling boards 6 and 14 for TWO objectives, but had made no inroad at all towards boards 22 and/or 10. Minor ROM victory.

I have to say that it was sobering to observe the die rolling differential between the two sides even playing solo. Whilst the Soviets had a few decent rolls, the ROM side, particularly in the first third (8 turns) of the game, simply rolled amazing attack rolls (10+ or 4-) and certain key units simply never failed a morale check (like heroic forces in the 0609/0708 village on board 22).

The deep-mud conditions also keep the Soviets primarily road-bound, though I had to forgo that because of the tenacity of the board 22 defense.

The Soviets in this scenario have the task of clearing roads and towns of a large, although dispirited Romanian force. While the Soviets clearly have the ability to do so in a local engagement, it is very difficult for them to hold the ground taken. They arrive with 9 platoons of T-34s, nine platoons of SMGs, a rocket artillery unit and a recon detachment. They can probe, disrupt, demoralize, chase and occassionally crush the Romanians but they cannot hold the ground.

Add to that the fact that the "ground" is primarily liquid. All units are mired in mud making it difficult to advance quickly in any off road direction. This forces the Soviets to take a predictable route to their victory conditions.

The Romanians set up primarily along the north-south road on the eastern side of the area. They heavily garrison the towns along the way, forcing the Soviets to risk their infantry in assaults in order to avoid having the valuable tanks caught without infantry in urban settings. They put no units whatsoever on Board 6, ceding that victory location to the Soviets but place a company of infantry with the 75mm on the hill south of that to threaten a counterattack.

The Soviets enter and send their recon detachment to capture the road to the west and send their main force forward to start clearing the eastern road. The Soviets have decided to go for a win by forcing their way down the eastern side of the board. A western strategy faces a much more difficult prospect as there is no north-south road there and all movement would be cross-country through the mud. Finally, without an attmpt at the town to the southeast, the best they can hope for is a minor victory and they are looking for better than that.

Within the first four turns the Soviets have lost their armored cars and four steps of infantry. This gives the Romanians a chance to reduce the Soviets victory performance if they can eliminate four more steps. On the other hand some very strong detachments of Romanian troops have fled the first two towns that the Soviets have attacked. So really a mixed bag of results.

By turn 10 the Soviets have captured the northwestern road (which was undefended) and have managed to lose ten steps, the last one coming on a failed Kommissar recovery (with a Kommissar morale of "10"). That fact is a perfect example of the die rolling in this action. A Romanian mortar platoon was attacked by two T-34 platoons in open ground and held out for 45 minutes. This simply wasn't a good day to be the Soviet commander.

Yet the Soviet assault ground forward. They had lost 9 steps of infantry and two of tanks and were grinding down the road towards Coarnele-Capru but time was clearly against them. The Romanians had garrisoned the town heavily and had the German support weapons there as well. The Soviets weren't able to even assault the town until turn 20 (of 24) and then still had to clear out the road system to the south where a lone Romanian platoon controlled the exit from the board.

Ultimately the Soviets were unable to take the town, losing another tank step and only gaining control of a single town hex. In addition, the Romanian company on the western board advanced to contest control of the western road which the recon detachment was not able to defend due to the loss of the armored cars earlier. The final total of victory conditions for the Soviets was "1" for control of the northeastern board, less the "1" for losing ten or more steps, leaving the Soviets with an unseemly "0" victory conditions met and a string of burning tanks. A major Romanian victory, a rare occurence this late in the war.

The tactical puzzle given to both sides here is daunting. The Romanians can't stop the Soviets but can retake anything they lose. The Soviets can take any position but can't hold any position. Given the Soviets' need to control areas they are at a disadvantage in the play of this one but there is plenty to enjoy in the play. Given the mud it seems odd to say that maneuver is critical but it absolutely is critical for both sides to think 5-7 turns ahead to consider where they need to be to have the best effect on the final result. I enjoyed this one, a solid "4".