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While at York I had a quick chat with Michael Curtis at 1st Corps and he mentioned he was playing a lot of I Ain't Been Shot Mum (IABSM) by Too Fat Lardies. I thought it had disappeared due to the concentration on Chain of Command but seemingly not, it can still be found. I mentioned the rules while in conversation with club member Dan and he said he had played at one time and had 15mm forces and he would like to try it again, so we set a date.

Dan decided to umpire a game between Simon and myself. I was the British with two platoons and a couple of Shermans, while Simon had one German platoon with two HMGs in support with the tempting promise of more to come. Simon defended while I attacked.

IABSM uses Blinds, which may or may not be an actual unit as they cross the battlefield: once spotted troops turn up or the Blind is a dud and gets taken away. I sent one platoon and one tank out on my right while the other attacked from my left flank, the defenders were strung out quite thin. My left hand tank took some non penetrating hits from a couple of Panzerfausts but they did leave the crew shaken and Pinned and pretty useless for most of the turns.

First platoon just tried to shoot the outnumbered enemy to their front but it was taking quite a long time, too long. On the right I made some aggressive moves against a small nearby house but again never seemed to have enough orders to get a good head of steam up and close with the again outnumbered enemy.

Simon played quite aggressively but began losing men and at one point a whole section went. Although I did not lose any complete sections several were hurting quite badly. As the clock ticked down a Panzer IV turned up and loosed a shot at the Sherman on the right flank, some paint flecks spun into the air. at this late stage I don't think I got a shot back, I may be mistaken. Overall the game was decided as a draw.

There were several mechanisms which were almost identical to CoC while others were simply puzzling, we didn't spend as much time as we would in the rule book as, many moons ago, Dan had drawn up several yes/no flowcharts which helped. One game is not enough for me to really give an opinion, I also think quite a bit of work and knowledge is required to get the best out of it.

George Anderson

 
 
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The defence of Pierrecourt was the third game in our Normandy 1944 campaign from the Two Fat Lardies campaign booklet Blenneville or Bust! Ralph and John again played the Allies whilst I played the Germans and Martin kindly umpired the whole thing.

In our first campaign game I had beaten off the American reconnaissance in force and put them on the back foot which resulted in the second game being a German counter-attack. However that failed in a bizarre game which used mainly Blinds and just a couple of units on the table. Lots of things learned in that game, however this resulted in scenario #3C being played. I found myself on the back foot yet again, but this time defending quite a considerable built-up area surrounded by a significant number of outlying farmsteads and isolated houses on the northern edge of the town of Pierrecourt.

I knew I was expecting an attack from the north-west but where exactly it would arrive I wasn't sure. The German defenders were limited to a deployment area to the south and to the east edges of the table, and mainly to the north of the town.

The Forces Involved

The German force comprised a significant number of support weapons, including five medium machine gun teams! These were placed strategically in an arc focusing inward towards the likely American arrival points. All were hidden within buildings and therefore started the game on hidden Blinds. The Germans weren't sure of the size of the American force but certainly it had been suggested that they had found a way over the river Ribeaux by building their own bridge. I could therefore expect to see armour in plentiful supply.

To counter this the Germans had a couple of PaK 40 anti-tank guns and couple of StuG III assault guns. These were also placed so as to create overlapping arcs of fire and kill zones. The Germans also had two full platoons of infantry which were placed within the confines of the town, but a couple of elements in fortified houses towards the western edge of the town, should the Americans choose to come that way. This was particularly beneficial as an American flank attack of armoured infantry did just that.

The Game

As with most games we started with the pack including only the Tea Break and Blinds cards for both sides. The American attack quickly developed on the western edge of the table and soon they were adding cards to the stack on a fairly frequent basis. German confidence did not waver and they continued to watch as more Americans units arrived.

The Americans brought forward a couple of armoured infantry platoons with their support weapons into the bocage hedged enclosure on the western edge whereby they then set up shop proceeded to engage in a firefight with a machine gun holed up in protected building the western edge of the town, where their superior firepower began to show through.

The Germans had placed their Forward Observation Officer in one of the lofts of the houses on the northern edge of the town and he had his card activated fairly quickly to call in support from an offboard battery of 210 mm Nebelwerfers. However the Germans were unfortunate and made repeated low dice rolls, failing to bring in this much-needed support until towards the very end of the game. When it did arrive the accuracy was so erratic that the first range shots disappeared well over the western horizon and off the table.

In the meantime the Americans brought armour onto the table in the hedged enclosures on the south-western corner of the board and started to aggressively reconnoitre the isolated farmsteads in the southern part of the battlefield. That area the Germans had left particularly weakly defended as the numerous buildings in that area posed a significantly psychological threat, with their potential kill zones and overlapping fire fields. Indeed there are only two medium machine gun teams in that half of the battlefield and both remained on reserve dice until absolutely necessary. They only made their presence known late in the game.

On the north western edge of the board an American armoured infantry platoon dismounted and entered the town area rather cautiously. It was initially placed under a Blind, but quickly found itself uncovered due to the presence of another medium machine gun and a separate building housing a German infantry section. There ensued a couple of close combats. The medium machine gun coming off the worst of one, having to retreat into an adjacent property garden whilst the second American section was beaten off by the German infantry squad.

To add further discomfort the Americans were then at the mercy of an assault gun prowling in the western sector of the town. Direct high explosive rounds were fired, pinning the squad and leaving it vulnerable to further fire. Two of their colleagues 0.3 inch machine gun teams also suffered at the hands of the assault gun who continued to harass the remaining American elements on the edge of the town.

As American confidence grew one of their armoured platoons burst through the dense hedge row and made a dash for the centre of the table. As if by magic the German Blinds card appeared and exposed a PaK 40 anti-tank gun who immediately conducted a barrage of aimed and snapshots at the platoon, famously missing with all three. Once exposed the anti-tank gun was at the mercy of every American gun: very quickly it was eliminated.

Thinking the coast to be clear more American armour appeared in the centre/southern sector intent in making a sweeping left flank manoeuvre. Almost immediately a second anti-tank gun was activated which quickly saw the end of the two leading Sherman tanks, both of went up in flames after receiving the first hit. The American attack was slowing down.

With their left flank progressing slowly the Americans resorted to using their considerable mortar power to lay down a smoke barrage and prevent the Germans (if there were any) from assaulting them in the flank.

Offboard American artillery was a little more successful than the Germans, but most of their efforts were aimed at the buildings in the centre of the table and away from German troops who were hiding mainly in the town. The Germans continued to calling for their support fire but to no effect and many opportunity targets came and went without success. During this time the American force had the use of air power but on every occasion it too failed to appear.

This is one heck of a slog of a scenario and very quickly the Americans realised that with increasing losses to their armoured support, the town was not going to give in easily and certainly not without further support. With that in mind the game came to the conclusion and the umpire decided that the Americans had not secured significant portion of the battlefield and that the Germans still held their line.

In short the Germans had stopped the Americans once again.

Now its on to the next battle in the scenario order and perhaps another German counter-attack can be expected?

The battle for Normandy and particularly the race to Blenneville continues!

Tim Whitworth

 
 
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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

 
 
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An I Ain't Been Shot Mum 6mm game played at GigaBites Café in Feb 2020.

At this point we called the game. The Germans had overrun the dug in infantry and taken out 9 of 11 Russian tanks.

German casualties were 2 destroyed Pz IIIs, and 2 more damaged. 18 infantry casualties.

The Russians had only 24 infantry casualties-(out of over 100 men) mostly on the right hand platoon.

This was one of the best Barbarossa games that I've played. Some panzers covered almost the entire length of the table getting around the Russian defenses. And the untrained crew situation of the 'superior' Russian tanks was sufficiently demonstrated.

Mark Luther

 
 
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IABCYM* Sworf(d) Beach game today. Iain Fuller invading the continent with two companies of infantry, and DD tank support. Funnies in the second wave, company supports in the third.

*I Ain’t Been CoC’d Mum: the IABSM variant using Chain of Command dice for activation

In summary, the British infantry had to do without any armour support until late in the game. The majority of the DD armour sank in heavy seas, hit mines or ran into other landing craft. Iain Fuller had to make do with good old infantry “up and at them” and pray I did not get good dice.

In the end WN28 was cut off by C Company and the main weapons destroyed, and A company off the beach and about to clear the two buildings supported by a Petard and a flail.

Great game and an intense experience!

Desmondo Darkin & Iain Fuller

 
 
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with Dave as Evgeny Dushkin and Mark as Siggi Sauerbrauten

Both sides moved on under Blinds. The Germans got their forces moving faster, spearheaded by the Puma armoured car and a Zug of Panzer IVJs, and followed by the HQ with the infantry. The Soviets advanced with their infantry riding on the T-34s, and quickly deployed into tactical formations close to the bridge.

The Germans spread out, their Puma rapidly retiring when faced with the Russian HQ T-34/85, but after making a couple of shots which bounced off the armour, the T-34s by the river blew it up.

More Soviet reinforcements arrived and moved forward, the Soviet plan being to seize the bridge accepting losses, and then hold it against counter attacks. The advancing T-34s to the North ran into a well prepared position of Panzer IVs, which opened up to great effect.

The Soviets were shocked by the quality of the German shooting and the losses they took.

German reinforcements arrived and deployed by the river in a concentrated formation. The Soviets started causing damage themselves, with the T-34s to the North destroying a Panzer IV, and Evgeny successfully called in a Lavochkin Lag 5 to machine gun the tanks as well, shocking the crew in the end one. By the river, the T-34s had destroyed the Zug leader's Panzer IV and taken out half of the Panzer HQ formation as well. The Germans were dismayed to find their armour little use against the Soviet guns, if they were hit the tank tended to explode.

Keen to take the bridge, the Soviet tanks by the river advanced across the road, but this sacrificed shooting in the middle of the battle, and cost them a second tank lost.

To the north, the Panzer IVs in the wood no longer had targets to their front, with all the T-34s blown up or bailed, and turned for a flank attack on the Soviets by the bridge, much to Evgeny's annoyance.

The Soviet infantry had advanced behind the T-34s and were in a good position to seize the bridge, but with every T-34 out of action the Soviets withdrew, conceding the battle.

The Germans had taken moderate casualties, but were in a reasonable position to secure the bridge.

Review

The Soviets had adopted a tactic of seizing the bridge and holding against counter attacks, the Germans a more cautious approach and engage in the hope of securing control of the battlefield and then holding the bridge.

The Russian tanks were much better armoured and almost equally gunned, but the Germans had higher quality crew, which led to a fascinating match up. The Russians adopted a two-aimed-shot strategy against the Germans’ two-aimed-plus-one-snap-shop, and were also moving to seize the ground. When the Russians hit they did serious damage, but they were outshot almost 2-1 over the battle. "Air Support" sounds brilliant until an ageing fighter with only a machine gun turns up to try and attack tanks.

I felt the battle hinged on two events: the Russians sweeping forwards in an armoured thrust towards a German Blind which opened fire first within 18" and took out half of the formation, and the Russian T-34s by the river moving forward to seize the road in the face of a row of Panzer IVs shooting at them.

There was a debate about the merits of using armoured cars for scouting when expecting a collision of tank forces and the tactics used by both sides, plus wondering if it would have been different with better dice rolls.

The Germans have the bridge, now on to Sorok for the next battle in the campaign.

Bevan Marchand

 
 
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Had a great game fighting scenario #2A: Avaux from Blenneville or Bust! last night.

The British came on strong, pushing tanks down the road as quickly as they could, trying to punch through the German lines. And it seemed at first they'd make it. The Germans winged a Sherman with their PaK40 but the Brits answered fire so quickly and deliberately that the PaK40 was dead before I got a chance to take a photo of it!

Fortunately for the Germans, the tanks pushed on into the village only to find themselves sandwiched between StuGs on one side and Panzerfausts on the other. The German anti-tank took a heavy toll on the Shermans.

The British infantry rushed forward to try to catch up with their smoking tanks to give some support but they'd pushed too far too fast into what seemed to be a German ambush.

The British attack was halted and I'm sure the Americans will have an opinion on that when we fight the next battle in the campaign.

Rob Goodfellow

 
 
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A 6mm IABSM game played at GigaBites Café Jan 2020.

The game was really designed to fit in with the Viking month at GigaBites Café and to be played in under 3 hours max. The idea was taken from actions involving the SS Wiking division during their drive to relieve Budapest during Konrad II.

On January 20, 1945, 5th Company, SS Panzer Regiment 5 had just occupied a slope ridge covered with corn when they were attacked from the north by the 110th Tank Brigade…

Mark Luther

 
 
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Excellent weekend of IABSM with Jenny Owens, Michael Curtis and Simon Curtis, playing the British counter attack at Arras in May 1940. All the figures and vehicles by 1st Corps. Buildings by Jenny.

 
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Today’s game of the Arras counterattack with Jenny Owens and Phil Turner.

We changed the British entry points from the previous game to get the game moving.

Michael Curtis

 
 
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Arras 1940 take 1. We had a run through of the demo game for Salute with Jenny Owens , Phil Turner. Need to make a couple of changes for tomorrow. All figures are 28mm, vehicles and guns except the 88mm are 1/48 by 1st Corps

Michael Curtis

 
 
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"Now then, Major Chappleton, perhaps you'd like to explain why you are standing in front of me instead of heading down Boreham Street at a rapid rate of knots, eh?"

The Major shifted uncomfortably in his chair. His usually immaculate overalls were burnt and stained, and there was a distinct smell of diesel in the air.

"Well, sir, I'm afraid we ran into rather a lot of Germans, sir…"

Neil and I played Scenario #8 "Tally Ho!" from the Sealion scenario book today. It involves a squadron of British A10s accompanied by three platoons of infantry attempting to punch through three platoons of German infantry supported by six anti-tank guns. The Germans have off-table fire support from a couple of mortars, the British have to rely on the fact that one of the A10 troops has 3.7" mortars instead of the usual two-pounders.

The British began the battle by sending forward a recon troop of MkIVs. They quickly spotted the German position: three anti-tank guns, three MMGs and a platoon and a bit's worth of infantry lining a hedgerow. Unfortunately the lead light tank exposed itself for just too long, and was permanently immobilised by a hail of fire from the PaK35s.

With the Germans stationary, the Brits moved up to begin their assault. Nervous of the German anti-tank capacity, the five normal A10s hung back out of sight, waiting for the infantry and support tanks to suppress the first line of anti-tank guns. The infantry duly moved forward, but came under a hail of fire from the German infantry and MMGs as they lined up along an opposite hedgerow. The Company HQ lost both Vickers almost immediately and, worse, the off-table mortars ranged in and inflicted the first of what would become a never-ending stream of casualties and deaths.

A firefight began, but without overwhelming fire superiority the British were showing no signs of opening up a gap for the tanks to exploit. The German MMGs, each accompanied by a Big Man were particularly effective in keeping the British infantry's heads down.

Eventually, however, numbers began to tell, and an effective barrage from the support tanks (at bloody last!) weakened the German line to the extent that Neil felt he should start to withdraw. The trouble for me was that by now most of my infantry sections in the two lead platoons had 2-3 wounds on them (damn those off-table mortars!) and despite the fact that I had killed quite a few crewmen, no German anti-tank guns had actually been knocked out.

Whilst this had been going on, frustration had led me to try and exploit the right wing of the battlefield, but the three A10s I sent there ran into the other three German anti-tank guns, so were forced to skulk out of sight.

The Germans in the hedgerow in front of me began to withdraw, but there were still enough of them to severely damage me if I attacked across the open fields. Naturally I didn't think of laying down smoke (that would have been far too clever) so I sent my other two A10s and a MkVI up the left side to winkle out two MMGs who were down to one crewman and a Big Man each: the idea being that I could then outflank the hedgerow.

I was getting really frustrated by this time, so I decided to drive over the MMGs rather than Besa them. A good idea in theory, but all that happened was that they fired back (damn unsporting!) and I got a turret jam on my lead A10 in exchange for one retreating back and one mangled under my tracks.

At this stage I was faced with an almost identical situation to before: the Germans had retreated to a second line of defence that looked a lot like the first one, only slightly nearer to Boreham Street! As we'd been playing for three hours and Neil had to go, we decided to declare a German victory as although I would have probably won in the end, I certainly hadn't broken through at the charge as the victory conditions required.

A good game, nonetheless. Neil was convinced that I'd have punched through his first line if I'd actually just charged his line with the tanks and followed up with my infantry…but I don't know: five A10s and three MkVIs verses three PaK35s and three MMGs and a line of infantry, with the tanks needing to cross 12-15" of open ground. Well, I'm sure we'll play it again one day, and then we'll see!

Robert Avery

 
 
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The final game of our wargaming weekend was another outing for the I Ain't Been Shot Mum from the TooFatLardies. I picked a scenario from the old Operation Sealion book and Lenin and I reprised our usual roles.

The Home Guard (Lenin) are defending the edge of Pevensey when the Blitzkrieg hoves into view. Their task is to hold up the Germans until the regulars can come to the rescue.

My German infantry came onto the board and straight into a crossfire from the town and the train halt. After having taken a few casualties I managed to get my machine guns deployed and concentrated some fire into the town which quickly put paid to the first Home Guard unit.

It was then an interesting exercise in FIBUA with the Home Guard slowing up my advance whilst their reinforcements advanced across the table. Here are some pictures of the game:

I have to say that if I were playing this one again I would move the town into the centre of the table as we really didn't use the top half of the table which was a bit of a waste.

Whisperin’ Al

 
 
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Phil Turner, Jenny Owens , Tim Howard , Leigh Jackson and I played a great game on Saturday. It was a 1940 scenario set around Arras. Here are some pictures:

Joe McGinn

 
 
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Following on from trying out my first game of IABSM, I wanted to try out the rules again and made this our Christmas game. Dean and Ninjasaurus Rex joined me the week before Xmas and I talked them through the rules. This game was set in Malaya again, and was a fictional engagement just after the Japanese had broken through the Allied lines during the disastrous Battle of the Slim River.

The mixed British and Indian force was defending a palm plantation against the attacking Japanese. My defence consisted of two platoons of infantry, supported by two 2 pounder anti-tank guns.

The Japanese attack had two platoons of infantry with three Type 97 tanks in support. The Japanese elected to split into a two pronged attack down the road and through the jungle on their left flank. The village held a battalion refuelling point which was the objective for the Japanese attack.

The Battle Begins

 
 

Aftermath

The game was over with a major Japanese victory. Although the Allied defenders had caused heavy casualties, they had lost their anti-tank guns, transports and the refuelling point. Their defence line was in disarray and the Japanese were pushing back across the board.

This was very similar from a historical point to the actual Battle of the Slim River, with the Japanese running riot in the Allied rear areas. You can find out more about this battle on the Storm of Steel Wargaming video on the subject (click HERE).

As another game of IABSM, this was an exciting clash and we all enjoyed the quick play aspect of the rules. We all quickly had the basic rules in our heads and there was little referring to the rules during the game. The one thing I missed out was having my British defenders concealed at the start of the game. This is something I need to understand a bit better for future. But we are still learning the system!

Alex Sotheran


 
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The hamlet of Krickenbeck

Played a 20mm 1945 game tonight with Daren B.

British forces were pushing down a road towards Oldenberg. They had to clear the road and secure the area. A small hamlet was on table, with fields surrounding it. The key feature was an area around a stream. The flood controls had been destroyed so the fields around it were flooded, leaving only one crossing point.

The British had overwhelming force, but the avenue of advance was very limited. Two troops of tanks, an AC troop, a carrier section and a MG section all supported an infantry platoon. Artillery support from a battery of Sextons was also available.

Facing this formidable force was a platoon of Volkstrum, a platoon of SS, one PaK 75. One HMG, one SdKfz251 and a Jagdpanzer IV. All the infantry sections had two Panzerfausts. The game hinged on the British not losing men, rather using firepower to win the day. For the defenders, any sort of damage done to the Brits was a victory.

We used the IABCYM from the Toofatlardies 2019 special and it handled the scenario very well.

The result: the British lost one Cromwell, one Bren carrier and six infantry KIA. The Volkstrum took a beating losing two Big Men and ten other ranks, the remainder broke and went home. The SS still held the village but the Brits were about to assault it using artillery and HE. On balance I think the Germans “won” as they managed to do some damage to the advance.

Desmondo Darkin

 
 
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Before Christmas, I tried out the Too Fat Lardies I Ain't Been Shot, Mum. I have wanted to try these rules out for a long time and decided to put together a small action set in Malaya and play it solo to get a hang of the game. I used the Fall of the Lion Gate TFL supplement to create the OOBs for the opposing Japanese attackers and British defenders.

A small village is attacked by Japanese soldiers in Malaya

The Japanese were attacking down a straight road into a small Malay village and had two platoons each of four sections of ten men each. The two platoons were each commanded by a level 1 Big Man and there was also a Level 4 & Level 3 Big Man as commanders.

The British defenders had two platoons each of three sections of eight men and a 2" mortar. Each of these platoon were commanded by a Level 1 Big Man, with an extra Level 4 Big Man in overall command. One defending platoon blind was placed in the area of the village and the second blind placed in a rear area patch of jungle.

The Japanese began their attack crossing the river and being spotted and immediately coming under fire from the defenders in the village.

Japanese attackers swarm over the bridge

They took heavy fire from the British riflemen, but it couldn't stop them advancing

On the Japanese left the second platoon began moving around through the jungle to try to outflank the village.

Meanwhile, one section made it across the bridge and attacked a British section in a small hut on the outskirts of the village

The fighting was heavy as both sides tried to gain the upper hand

Fives and Sixes were needed in close combat and the Japanese rolled high, almost wiping out the British section with seven kills!

Most of the defenders are killed

the sole surviving british soldier is forced to retreat

It wasn't all going well though as British riflemen laid down a heavy fire on the platoon, killing some attackers and pinning a section.

The jungle and river was proving to be difficult to get through and the flanking manoeuvre was taking a slow pace.

The Japanese were slowly pushing their way into the village.

Soldiers from the second Japanese platoon charged a second building holding British defenders.

The overwhelming numbers broke the line and the remaining British soldiers were thrown back out of the village.

There was still another British section in the third house, a ill disciplined charge by the Japanese had poor results and the defenders held on.

Despite this small set back, the attackers were gaining ground and forcing their way through the buildings, one at a time.

 

Now the Japanese get into the village proper, and The British defence line was wavering

Meanwhile, the second British platoon deployed from its blind and began firing at the Japanese that they could see from their jungle position.

The second Japanese platoon had got past the British defence line…

and pursued the beleaguered defenders across the fields.

Once in a good position, the second British platoon was assaulted by two Japanese sections led by their commander.

The fighting was brutal, with both side taking heavy casualties.

 

The Japanese commander was cut down at the head of his men under fire from the British rifles.

At this point the final tea break card came up and I ended the game in a Japanese victory.

As a first game of IABSM, it took a little while as I had to go back to the rules every so often, just to remind myself. However, most of the basic rules can easily be held in your head and I think a few games would be enough to cement them in there. It's a fast play game and had a lot of friction and unpredictability due to using the command cards which allow units to activate.

This means you have to be careful and use opportunities as soon as they arise, such as using Big Men to command units when they can. This was a lot smaller than a typical game of IABSM, but it was enough to give me an idea of the game flow and the general rules. What I do like within the rules is that they are not prescriptive, it is about enjoying the game rather than being a rules lawyer and that might not suit a lot of players. For me, I really like that approach, as the Lardies say: play the period, not the rules. I've been looking for a replacement for Rapid Fire! for some time now and think I've found it!

Alex Southeran

 
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Played a 1940 using the IABCYM rules from the recent TFL Magazine (I Ain’t Been CoC’d Yet Mum: a variant of I Ain’t Been Shot, Mum that uses the dice-based system from Chain of Command for activation rather than cards or chips). Philip Andrews and Iain Fuller battled out a scenario I put together based on the “Arkforce” that was left to defend a perimeter near Le Havre, in June 1940.

The Germans had a standard infantry company and two Panzer zugs ( Mark II and Mark I’s); the British had an infantry company, two understrength AT platoons ( two 2pdrs and two 25mm AT), a troop of Vickers tanks, and a Vickers MMG platoon, but these were spread thin across two lines of defence trying to keep the main escape route open.

The British had a tough job on their hands.

Both sides had variable reinforcements, and each time a “Mums” dice was accumulated a reinforcement could be rolled for.

The table was 10ft by 6ft and the action was non-stop and by the end of 3.5 hours of fighting the Germans managed to get almost to the main road and cut the last route to safety.

The rules worked well and it was good to try them out on a 1940 scenario rather than the 1944 Normandy. The light armour of all the tanks was frightening for those of us used to Panzer IV or Panthers!

Philip Andrews comments:

Iain Fuller and Philip Andrews contemplate Phil’s appalling die rolling😂

It was a hoot even as the Brits. There was some scoffing at my front line being two platoon ‘bastions’ in densest terrain flanked by the light armour of the Hussars (if it was good enough for Wellington...) with 2pdrs and MMG in deep defence and long fields of fire. My dice rolling was, er., well below the bell curve , but I managed a local infantry counter attack (also to spread out my platoon when the artillery ranging started on my position!) and I killed a lot his Big Men, admittedly one by the flukiest bomb drop by a Fairy Battle. Nice proper suppression then assault by Iain on the farmhouse. On the scenario, the Germans probably have 6in too far to go. Thanks again to Des and Iain.

Iain Fuller comments:

1940 action with Jerries taking on the Jocks of Arkforce. Great fun game with Panzer I & II's taking on Vickers Mk.VI's and 2pdr and 25mm AT guns. A couple of Fairey Battles even turned up too!

We used our 'I Aint Been CoC'd Yet Mum' adaptation again and it is playing better each time we do. Big thanks to Des for the game and Phil for being a gentleman opponent.

Desmondo Darkin

 
 
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It's 1800 on 11 July 1943 in western Russia, where the German I Battalion, 195th Infantry Regiment of the 78th Sturm Division, is on the attack, looking to evict the Soviet 1023rd Rifle Regiment, augmented by the remnants of the 1019th Rifle Regiment, themselves refugees from the defeat at Shirokoye Bulotev. The goal of the fight is possession of the 1 May Collective Farm; the Soviets are defending prepared positions while the Germans are conducting hasty attack supported by Corps artillery (rockets) and armor.

I am playing this game because I have the good fortune of being buddies with Steve of the "Sound Officer's Call" blog , and he is running a "Firestorm Ponyri" campaign. He is playing some games with his local buddies, but was unable to play all of the games himself; rather than simply 'dice off' for results of campaign fights they were unable to play on the table top, Steve asked if anyone in the blogosphere wanted to help, so here I am.

It's been a little bit of an issue that I literally just sold off a bunch of German late war gear, so I'm a bit under strength, but Steve is working with me to make sure the fights I get match up with the forces I have. Please enjoy the last instalment of my support to Steve's campaign at Kursk.

Overview, north is up. The 1 May Collective Farm is the series of buildings at bottom left, while "Yuri's Hovel" is at top right. Other than that it's all cultivated farmlands, uncultivated grassland, and stands of trees bisected by a southwest-northeast running road with several branches coming off it. Highly significant to the military terrain on the battlefield are the stands of trees that line almost every single road on the map; the various hedges you see spread across the table (mostly lining the cultivated crop fields) do not block line of sight, but the stands of trees absolutely do, so the battlefield isn't nearly as open as it may appear at first glance.

Once again I'm using the Too Fat Lardie's excellent "I Ain't Been Shot Mum" rules, which I find work great for solo play. I'm playing on a 6' x 4' mat (from The Wargames Company) using 10mm troops that are a mix of Pendraken, Minifigs UK, and Takara. The buildings, trees, and hedges are from Crescent Root Studios, the fields are from Hotz Mats, and the beautiful roads are from Fat Frank in the UK.

Orders of Battle

The Germans

  • Commanding Officer

  • 2 x Rifle Company

    • Each with three Platoon Commanders and nine rifle squads

  • 1 x Schwere Company

    • MG Platoon (PC and 3 x MG-42

    • Mortar Platoon (PC and 4 x 8.0cm tube)

    • Infantry Gun Platoon (PC and 2 x 7.5cm howitzer)

    • Truck Platoon (2 x Opel truck)

  • 1 x Panzer Company

    • 2 x Panzer Platoon (3 x Pz Mk IIIJ w/long 5.0cm gun)

    • 1 x ersatz Panzer Platoon (2 x Stug III w/long 7.5cm gun, 1 x Marder w/76.2mm gun)

  • 1 x Armored Carrier Platoon (3 x Sdkfz 251 halftrack)

  • 1 x Rocket Artillery Battery (2 x Nebelwerfer)

The Germans are rated as average capability and average morale; yes, they are very experienced and grasp the importance of this attack, but they have suffered heavy losses and are worn out from six straight days of ferocious fighting.

The Soviets

  • Commanding Officer

  • 1 x Rifle Company

    • Three Platoon Commanders, three 50mm mortars, and nine rifle squads

  • 1 x MG Company

    • PC, 2 x SG-43, and 3 x Maxim 7.62mm MG

  • 1 x "Tank Killer" Company, consisting of:

    • 1 x Anti-Tank Rifle (ATR) Platoon (PC and 4 x PTRD ATR)

    • 1 x Field Gun Platoon (3 x 76.2mm 'crash-boom' guns)

    • 1 x Anti-Tank Gun (ATG) Platoon (PC and 4 x Zis-3 57mm ATGs)

  • 1 x Mortar Platoon (PC and 3 x 82mm mortars)

The Soviet Rifle Company is comprised of the scraps of two beat-to-hell Rifle Regiments that mostly weren't particularly well-trained or experienced and are pretty much shattered at this point, but they've been stiffened by the additional automatic weapons of an understrength Machine Gun Company and a specialized "Tank Killer" company.

The Tank Killers are an elite force comprised of savvy veterans with very high morale. They are specially trained to avoid target indicators by dispersing their guns and digging them in in open areas, almost flush with the ground, where they allow the Germans to advance to point blank range. They use their field guns to separate the panzers from their supporting infantry, their ATRs to harass tank commanders and force them to button up, and their long-barrelled 57mm guns to engage the enemy's flanks.

I don't know if any of that is true, but it sounded good, and it's how I used them in this fight!

There's another wrinkle, which I'll cover below.

Overview again, this time with troops. The German start line (which is quite crowded) is at top right, around Yuri's Hovel, while the Soviets are dug-in from top left to bottom left to bottom right, defending the 1 May Collective Farm (bottom left).

All Soviet units except the 82mm Mortar Platoon begin the game dug-in and camouflaged.  The Soviets are, once again, utilizing a 'hedgehog' defense of mutually supporting strongpoints, of which there are three. 

At top left is Strongpoint Nadia; at center left is Strongpoint Mila; and at bottom right is Strongpoint Sasha.  Each strongpoint consists of the following:

  • Platoon Commander

  • 50mm Mortar

  • 3 x Rifle Squads

  • Maxim 7.62mm MG

  • 76.2mm Field Gun

Soviet Deployment

So you've got a beat up, worn out rifle platoon bolstered by a machine gun and the 76.2mm field gun. I thought long and hard about whether to split to break up the Field Gun Platoon and one of the MG Platoons, but in the overall scheme of things, each strongpoint has close defense provided by its three rifle squads, and each strongpoint has a significant long-range capability consisting of the MG, light mortar, and field gun. I believe the long-range capability and the elan and training of the tank killers provides the low-grade infantry a real boost in confidence, such that breaking up an MG platoon and the Field Gun Platoon was warranted.

The 82mm Mortar Platoon is at far left bottom, in a field. The 'other' MG Platoon (PC and 2 x MGs) is at bottom center left. The Anti-Tank Gun Platoon is split: the PC and two guns is at far left top (the "West ATG" position), and the other two guns are at bottom center right (the "South ATG" position). The Soviet CO is at bottom center, between the MG Plt and the South ATG position. The ATR Platoon is dug-in at center, just below the road, the purpose of which is two-fold: first, engage German armor coming down the road, and second, keep between any German infantry and the ATGs below them.

My only regret with the Soviet deployment is that I wish I could have even further dispersed the four Zis-3 ATGs (in order to counter German supporting fires sure to be levied against them); I would have but I didn't have enough sandbagged emplacements, so I had to double up each set of ATGs!

German Plan of Attack

Okay, this is ugly and not terribly creative, for four reasons:

  1. The Germans are attacking on the hop, conducting a hasty attack straight off the march, immediately following an attack earlier today. They've barely had time to untangle and reorganize their units following the earlier attack, and no time to rest or replenish.

  2. The Germans are in a very big hurry as supplies, men, and equipment are all worn out and Intelligence reports strong Soviet forces en route to reinforce the 1 May Collective Farm garrison.

  3. The Germans had no time to conduct reconnaissance of the battlefield, so they have no idea the strength or disposition of the enemy facing them.

  4. In order to get to the Collective Farm, the German infantry have a tremendous amount of ground to cover on foot. Moving cross-country would be almost as exposed, and would be even slower than heading straight down the middle via the road.

So this is literally 'hey diddle diddle, straight up the middle,' in a hurry to take and consolidate on the Farm before the Soviet reinforcements arrive. The German CO was at the head of the column coming into the area; he called a halt at Yuri's Hovel, sent for his senior leaders (some companies are now being led by Sergeants), and climbed atop the roof to get a look at the situation. He can't see anything in terms of Soviet troops or activity, but a simple appreciation of the terrain makes a few things clear:

  • the Soviets are sure to be thick in the Collective Farm and its adjacent wooded areas; he'll sic the the Nebelwerfers (which Corps has placed in direct support) on them.

  • the wooded area to the northwest (in the vicinity of Strongpoint Nadia) is sure to contain a bushel of the Red devils. He can ignore them/use direct-fire support to keep them at bay.

  • the wooded area to the south (at bottom right, in vicinity of Strongpoint Sasha) is also sure to hold hordes of the Bolsheviks. They're too close, they'll have to be deal with.

So, the German Colonel climbed down and quickly sketched out the plan of attack to his subordinates:

  • Direct fire-supports (MG Plt and IG Plt) will emplace in/around Yuri's Hovel with the mission of protecting the Kampgruppe's right flank and isolating the objective (keep any Soviet forces north of the Farm away from the Farm). (target acquisition and quick, accurate engagement will be king, might be a bit much to ask of worn out troops)

  • 1st and 2nd Platoons of 2nd Company will assault the southeast wood (SP Sasha). This assault will not be supported; their mission is to tie down the defenders without becoming decisively engaged. (god luck with that!)

  • The Ersatz Panzer Platoon (hereafter referred to as the "Stug Platoon") will lead the entire 1st Company, in platoon order, down the road, straight into the objective. Speed is of the essence! (emphasis on speed can get real expensive real quick!)

  • The indirect-fire supports (Mortar Platoon and Nebelwerfer Battery) need to get in where they fit in, i.e., find some space out of LOS to likely enemy positions and set up. They are tasked directly to the Kampgruppe commander. (terrible idea, a leader's job is to lead, a commander's job is to command, a forward observer's job is to forward observe. There's a reason the duties are split!)

  • 1st and 2nd Panzer Platoons, and 3rd Platoon, 2nd Company (mounted in the halftracks) are the Kampgruppe's reserve (begin game off table to east).

So, what did he miss?

Well, he's incorrect in his assumption that the Collective Farm is a bulwark of the defense; you see, the elite Soviet 'Tank Killers' are trained to look for target indicators (such as a cluster of buildings and clumps of trees) and stay the hell away, knowing the Germans will target them with copious amounts of artillery and mortars. This means Nebelwerfer rockets will soon be falling on unoccupied ground, and the KG's assumption, along with his inability to conduct a real reconnaissance, means he completely missed SP Mila, which his Stug Platoon and 1st Company will be waltzing straight down the road to. And he has completely missed the flanking deployment of the deadly Soviet Zis-3s.

Time to Fight!

 
 

Wow, I still can't believe it, the Germans just couldn't get it done. 2nd Company got shot to pieces before it could even decide to not get decisively engaged, and 1st Company got mortared to death before it could make use of the road. The Germans committed their reserve rather early, but the mechanized infantry just sort of floundered about as the armor got shot to pieces by anti-tank weapons that the German infantry never got the opportunity to locate. And while the Soviet mortars did yeoman's work, the German heavy weapons (MG Plt, IG Plt, Mortar Plt, and Neblewerfers) were next to worthless, so from that standpoint, the Soviet hedgehog defense worked wonders in just keeping the German supporting fires occupied while their mortars and machine guns handled the German infantry.

I haven't been doing this, but I figured I'd share the loss figures:

German

  • 4 tanks, 1 assault gun, 1 tank destroyer knocked out

  • 1 tank, 1 assault gun, and three halftracks destroyed to keep from falling into enemy hands

  • 10 rifle squads (out of 18) knocked out and 3 captured

Soviet

  • 3 Zis-3 ATGs knocked out

  • 2 76.2mm Field Guns knocked out

  • 1 50mm mortar team knocked out

  • 4 anti-tank rifle teams knocked out

  • 6 (of 9) rifle squads knocked out

Man, that was a slog, very tough fight, with an every dwindling chance the Germans would be victorious, but still a possibility of snaking out a victory, right up to the very end. If only they could have gotten those halftracks moving just a little sooner; should have used their CO to get them moving, rather than continuing to use him to try and get 1st Company and the Stug Platoon (stalled out after the Soviet ATR Platoon whacked their Platoon Commander) moving. C'est la guerre...

Just Jack