A game played at Gigabites Cafe in Marietta, GA back in December and it gave me a chance to get my Commandos on the table for the first time.

This scenario came from the Forgotten Battles from France to Germany, January to April 1945 scenario book from Anschluss Publ. The gist of the game is that the defending Germans are expecting the British to come from the west and have placed their defenses accordingly. However the Commandos have worked all the way round to the east and are launching their attack from that edge.

This means that not only does the German player have to not know this but there has to have enough table to the west to make that attack look plausible.

Leese: view from the south

From the east edge

This was the edge that the Commandos would come in from. The table is flat. Its early April so not much foliage out yet. The open fields are pretty bare of cover so the Brits have to move fast.

Jon and Sean assisted by his significant other, Beca had the 6 Commando units. They started with with 2 Fighting Troops. A bit different TOE for these with each Troop having 2 Sections with 2 Subsections of 12 men -- total of 48 per Troop. But the real advantage was that they had 5 Big Men per Troop.

It was my first outing for the green beret minis. I had painted up 4 Troops plus the Weapons Troop. Loads of leader figures. So I was interested in seeing how they fared with so many Big Men available.

Main street from the north

Sebastian was the defending 5 Kompanie, SS Training Battalion Hitlerjugend.

A standard three platoons with three sections each in this average company. Plenty of panzerfausts.

They had two MMG teams and a light flak unit from RAD Battery 5 with four 20mm AA guns. All could be dug in, but he was told that the Tommies were to the west.

Leese from the west

There had been some pre game shelling, but the town was still standing.

Sebastian realizing that I had lied to him

Sebastian had placed his dug in units to cover the western approaches. He laid out his Blinds and Dummy Blinds - not really required for a hidden defender but made life easier.

Jon took 1 Troop and headed for the northern flank and got up to the last low hedge quickly.

British Rush

2 Troop on the left was slower and more scattered with their initial advance.

There was also a 3 Troop, and the Heavy Weapons Troop following behind. And later a troop from C Squadron, 23rd Hussars with three Cromwells and a Comet that would advance north into Leese.

Sebastian wondering what he got himself into.

1 Troop preparing to move into Leese

Sebastian had to switch directions with the platoon dug in along the road to face his rear. Two 20mm guns were by the large house that were faced to fire west down the road. It took them a turn to face east and then had limited views.

Germans forced back on their left

Jon's 1 Troop moved around the north edge and forced the HJ back out of their road positions. 2 Troop coming in on the south edge of the town. 2 inch mortars laying smoke down to block the AA fire.

Heavy fighting in the north

At this stage Jon's 1 Troop was getting in close to the Germans on the right. Both sides were taking casualties.

The Blind in the center is a German Dummy.

Defenders move to their left

Finding their entrenchments facing the wrong way the platoon on the south edge of Leese moves to their north to use the cover of the wall and buildings.

With all the movement going on, trees refused to stay upright and walls kept getting knocked about even with a bit of spray glue

2 Troop

Using smoke to block fire and hopefully move up behind, the Commandos on this part of the town lost a Section co-leader and several men. They never did get across the road.

Germans falling back again

Jon's 1 Troop kept pressing around the northern flank. And the fields of fire were limited for the 20mm and MMG

3 Troop and the Heavy Weapon Troop arrive

Commandos could use some help from the Vickers MGs The weapons troop has 3 Vickers and the FOO for the 3" mortars.

They are moving towards the southern edge of Leese.

2 Troop taking fire from MGs in the center

They had several mislaid smoke rounds and never could block the automatic fire from the center of town.

RAD crews pull back

1 Troop was too close and was coming around their left so they moved back across the main road.

I had to use a 37mm as I could only find three 20mm models

Germans pulling back toward the north

1 Troop was trying to close off the exit, but they were down to some weak sections by now. 2 Troop still stuck on the south edge and waiting for the follow up Troops.

German Exodus

And its a rush to escape. Seeing more troops coming in from the east and tanks from the south, Sebastian decides to fight another day and rushes past the strung out 1 Troop

The Training Company heads out

The 20mm and MMGs put down fire to cover the withdraw. Some of 1 Commando sections are down to zero to two APs so offer little resistance to the fleeing Germans

Final Shots

It was a bloody game for some units.

The SS Training unit lost 23 men form just 2 platoons. 1 platoon was still unbloodied. 1 MMG was wiped out and the AA guns had all displaced.

Jon's 1 Troop had 27 casualties (of 48). 2 Troop of Sean and Beca had 25 casualties and lost 1 Section Co-leader.

The tanks were still off board and 3 Troop and the weapons Troop just moving into town.

The Germans didn't really have a good chance to 'win' this one, but they did cause a lot of hurt on the Commandos.

Mark Luther