A couple of weeks ago we started to play the Blenneville or Bust! campaign set in 1944 Normandy and written by Robert Avery.

The Scenario

The first game was an attack/defence game with the Americans using a large reconnaissance force to probe for a river crossing point that could be used by their heavy armour. The scenario was set in an area of Normandy countryside containing a significant amount of high sided bocage hedgerows, making it the perfect position for a German defence.

I played the German side and Martin kindly umpired. The Americans were played by Jon and Barry.

The battlefield comprises a major road running from north to south along which the main American advance takes place; however they have the option of following a lesser quality track adjacent to the river which skirts the eastern flank of the battlefield.

Towards the northern end of the battlefield is an isolated farmstead and across the road from it a significant area of high ground to the west dominates the river valley area. To the south there is another small building adjacent to the bridge that crosses the river. It is this feature that the Americans are interested in. Their mission is to determine if this river crossing will take the weight of their heavy armour.

As mentioned before there is a significant amount of high hedgerow with a limited number of access points, such as openings or gateways. Without them anything less than a medium tank weight vehicle cannot penetrate the high earth banks and so this limits the Americans with their lighter reconnaissance armour considerably. It also to the contrary assist the German defensive player immensely, providing lots of opportunities to hide in hedgerows and field openings, lurking in ambush and awaiting their victims.

The Germans placed an advanced infantry section at the foot of the hill near the farm buildings surveying the two approach roads that the Americans could take. Acting rather as a sacrificial diode, they immediately exposed all emerging Allied Blinds entering the table and forcing the Americans to quickly review their battle plan.

The Germans placed their limited anti-tank capacity, in the form of two Panzerschreck teams; one in the farmyard and one in the hedgerows of the trackway near the river, should Americans choose that route as a fast bypass to reach the bridge.

Both teams would be kept well occupied throughout the game.

The Forces Involved

The Germans were rather limited in firepower; only having a couple of infantry platoons, some SdKfz 231 armoured cars and a couple of half-track mounted anti-tank guns.

On the other side, the American force was quite strong, with eight Greyhound armoured cars, numerous jeeps, a platoon of M5 Stuart light tanks and a reconnaissance platoon from the 425th Infantry Regiment. Anti-tank weapons and bazookas abound. They were also given on-table support from a couple of M8 Howitzer Motor Carriages. All in all a formidable force.

The Game

With the main American thrust shocked to discover the advanced German section, the action switched temporarily to the track adjacent to the river where Barry led a second reconnaissance platoon at full speed along the riverside. These too were surprised as lurking infantry platoons opened up with all their light machine guns and made numerous anti-tank assaults against the surprised reconnaissance team.

Despite all this difficulty the American attack on the western side of the battlefield successfully defeated the solo German section and quickly skirted up over the hill seeking a fast route down to the other side of the bridge which was defended by a solitary German armoured car. However in doing so they exposed themselves to fire from the centre of the table with Germans lining most hedgerows with infantry and their numerous light machine guns. These were also joined by fire from the improvised anti tank platoon of half track mounted 37 mm anti tank guns. Again there was considerable carnage.

With the eastern side US assault pinned against the river and slowly losing vehicle after vehicle from infantry assaults; the Germans went onto the counter attack launching their remaining armoured cars in a suicide charge up the hill. Firing their auto cannons as they went, the remaining US forces succumbed to the immense firepower and the American attack halted completely.

The Result

It was a resounding win for the Germans who had prevented the Americans from undertaking a successful reconnaissance of the river crossing.

An early setback for the Americans and one which will see the Germans launch a massive counter-attack in the next scenario.

Figures are all 20mm and from Martyn and my collections, and the terrain is from The Last Valley. We had to use some British armoured cars as we ran out of M8 Greyhound models!!

Tim Whitworth

The battlefield as seen from the south

The blue tiled building in the foreground is the bridge keeper's house and is defended by a lone German armoured car

Looking northwards with the high ground to the left-hand side of the picture

The central road runs parallel to the river and has significant amounts of high sided dense Normandy hedges along its route. These fields are only occasionally punctured with access routes and gateways and make swift advance almost impossible for the Americans.

American Greyhound armoured cars our quickly exposed as they advance along the main road

A strategically placed and sacrificial German infantry squad lay in wait in a copse on the northern slopes high ground which dominated the river valley.

German reconnaissance troops lie in wait

On the eastern track adjacent to the river, American reconnaissance troops are ambushed in a series of successful infantry anti-tank assaults

The American attack in this sector is halted almost immediately.

Advanced German anti-tank defences

A lone Panzerschreck team sits in the farmyard approach. Within a short time it manages to destroy two of the four reserve Stuart light tanks.

American reconnaissance jeeps are ambushed by a Panzerschreck team

The Americans attempt to counter cross battlefield fire by creating smokescreens

Finally the American armour arrives in the form of a Stuart light tank platoon

This quickly becomes the victim of a panzerschrek team lurking in the farm buildings (just off shot to the top right of the picture where the road junction forms). In the foreground numerous knocked out and disabled American armoured cars and jeeps litter the hillside.

The table looking from the North and along the river and the adjacent dirt track running parallel along the eastern table edge

This is where the American reconnaissance platoon came to grief at the hands of numerous German infantry close assaults.

An M8 Howitzer Motor Carriage attempts to provide support

Whilst a German SdKfz 250/10 with its 37mm anti-tank gun lays in wait in a gap in the hedgerows.

Defending the crossing point