Wednesday War - Battlegroup Overlord & Dead Man's Hand

Battlegroup Overlord (BGO)

 

 

This week’s game saw Si and Frazer return to Battlegroup Overlord.  We decided to drop the points from 600 to 400 in an effort to complete a game in an evening.  We also used a single D6 for orders.  This produced some tactical challenges and produced a quick turn for each player most of the time.  We haven’t played with a single D6 for orders since the first 3-4 games and having played a lot more games it is now far less of an obstacle than it first appeared to be.

 

Frazer’s list

 

Fallschirmjäger Battlegroup

 

Forward HQ

Infantry Platoon + Pak38 + 2 Panzerfausts

Infantry Platoon + Pak38 + 2 Panzerfausts

2 x 80mm Mortars – off table

Sniper

 

Simon’s list

 

British Armoured Division

 

Forward HQ

Infantry Platoon inc light mortar + 6 Pounder + Vickers HMG + 3” mortar + PIAT

Tank Troop 2 x Sherman, 1 x Firefly

Off table artillery request (2+)

Sniper

 

We used the Carentan layout from the BGO book but had the Germans holding the three buildings in the centre and the road junction with a platoon and the British started with a platoon on the Western table edge; all other units in reserve.  Snipers were deployed

 First and Second squads hold the village

 Third squad hold the road

The British advanced through the wood line and wait for their armour to arrive before attempting an assault on the village

 Holding both the village and the main road, the Fallschirmjäger bring up an AT gun (used as a Pak38)

As the Germans pull their other AT gun forward 25 Pounder barrage lands pinning the platoon HQ and the sniper.  The MG team at the corner of the wall were targeted by the British 6 pounder, the Vickers HMG and mortar fire.  The never lost a man and the two occasions they failed their save they passed their morale check with a successful beyond the call of duty test and brassed up the advancing infantry

 The Platoon HQ and Sniper are pinned down

 When your number is up it’s up.  The Pak38 may lack some punch at this point in the war but double 6 is double 6 and the lead Sherman brews up.  Moments later the Sherman on the road meets the same fate.  The tankers had pushed their luck as the firefly had been pinned twice as

The chit pulled for the loss of the armour and the attempt to call in the aircraft.  The British had two attempts for aircraft and were unlucky to miss both chances. 

It wasn’t to be a day of days for the British as a wildly deviating ranging shot lands in the British forming up point pinning a section, the Forward HQ and the light mortar team.

As the evening drew to a close the British still had a lot of open ground to cover and the BR was 18 from 29 whilst the Germans were 10 from 34.

Dead Man's Hand

Chris and NDM are heading in to Scout Hut and for Wild West entertainment of Dead Man's Hand

 The gangs are heading into town

Scene One

Chase “Quick Draw” Mcgraw, ducked back down under the window frame, wary he may be see.

A few minutes earlier he’d been rumbled, sneaking marked cards into the poker deck was always going to be risky, but being the chance of being caught is what made it exciting…. Until he actually was caught.
hase left the comfort of the Inn, intent on making a run for it, but no sooner had the saloon doors stopped swinging, did the bullets start flying.

From the cover of the outdoor latrine Wyat unleashed a hail of shots at Chase, who successfully ducked out of the way. Taking this opportunity, Chase rushed across the dusty street, burst through the latrine door and fired at point blank range…

Click, click, click…

Empty!

With one swift move, Wyat turned and bang Chase was down in the dirt.

Scene Two

Hearing about Chase’s demise, his former gang mates marched into to town to get revenge.
Finding the Wyat brothers held up in the boozer, the surrounded the hut ready to unleash pain.

Little did they know that the Wyat family knew they were coming, and as Chase’s crew got ready for the attack, Dirk and Clarence made the presence know and appeared out of the shadows, a hail of repeater shots pinging off the buildings, narrowly missing the strangers in town.

 

With the signal given, the Wyat’s burst out of the tavern, guns blazing, straight into the teeth of the shotgun of Curt, Chase’s brother!

Click, click!

Another empty weapon, another piece of bad luck!

Cursing at the inferior equipment is sibling had provided the gang, Curt ordered his gang to close up and dispatch the Wyat family as fast as possible.

Click, Click…

It wasn’t just Curt and Chase who had rubbish kit, the whole gang did, and as the realisation hit, so did the shots from the Wyat’s.

One by one Curts gang hit the dirt, blood seeping into the drainage as the Wyat’s shots found their mark. It was all over in minutes, and then the small town of Scout Hut went quiet, only broken by the clicking of glasses as the victors toasted their victory.