Re: campaign scenario setup help
 

a few minuits later the whole mess is cooling down the russians have taken their bloody nose lost some 20 tanks and now it has come down to infantry laying on the ice sniping at our trenches while the heavy artillery continues to disturb Major hausers sleep.

Maybe there will be a second wave of tanks otherwise its more or less over for tonight.

One KV-1 was immobilised and the halftracks are getting ready to tow it up the riverbank to see if it canbe used :)))))

it will be a good replacement for the t-26 that went down to the bottom of the river.

The raidparty in the north is meanwhile looking for the russian artilley maybe they can catch some katyuhsha batteries :)

Re: campaign scenario setup help
 

After 1 hour the whole western riverbank was heavily devastaed by the russian artillery while the river itself has filled with dead and wounded russian soldiers. KG Hausers lost a few men to shrapnel wounds and frostbite but the rest gotthrough this night unharmed.

The raid platoon returned to lines with valuable intelligence and some prisosners from the russian Divison commander.

In the morning snow started falling again extinguishing the fires started from the artillery and covering the fallen. Around midnight almost all traces of the attack were gone only the destroyed tanks were proof of the nights fighting and dying.

Re: campaign scenario setup help
 

Ok, the next scenario is in Africa and will feature the Italians only.

You unit caused quite a stir after somehow escaping from East Africa (even though you had to leave you faithful Askaris behind). Now you have a relatively boring assignment: guarding the southern flank of the Italians and German Africa Korps.
While Rommel is preparing his next offensive, you are sitting in an ex-Osmani fort at the edge of the Sahara desert, watching out for the occasional British or Gaullist raiding force from Sudan. You have some motorized vehicles for patrols into the desert.
Today a scout plane spotted French forces at a nearby oasis, probably preparing an assault on your fort. Counter attack and destroy them.

Re: campaign scenario setup help
 

the italians are an overstrength infantry company now. The Askaris decided to stay in their homeland and in the dire situations of the escape from east africa there was nothing much their commanders could do to make them stay. also fuel and vehicles were scarce so many of the heavyweapons had to be ditched.

Re: campaign scenario setup help
 

With the news from the recon plane coming in colonel baggio rders the rests of his once so glorious Cassadores de Africa to mount up and destroy the french in their base. He knows the men that made it so far through the dessert will easily defeat this green French units. They might not have the newest weapons but they have tons of experience fighting in the desert.

As the sun come up the trucks leave. what a relieve to be able to drive in a truck thinks corporal Vicari after having lugged that stupid AT rifle through half of africa he is eager to but some bullets in a bren carrier.

The map is quite open with a ridge seperating the french and italian basses. the plan is to disembark and use the cover of the rough terrain for an ambush if the french already are on the move.

Preserving the transport is of utmost importance nobody here wants to be on foot again after the march from east africa

Re: campaign scenario setup help
 

Colonel Baggio was really pleased with the radios they had here this gave him a perfect overview of the situation. His mortars and the gun were shelling the oasis. The spotter plane found some machinegun positions and mortars that were badly camoflagued and promptly a bren carrier and a mg team were destroyed.

The french were surprised while taking there breakfast and cursed their bad reconaissance while they jumped for cover in the trees.

Il Cassadore de Africa were climbing a ridge a few hundred meters away from theoasis getting ready for the galant and honorful stormattaque. one of the soldiers in the camici nere fitted a breastplate he still had from his grandfather and the askaris(one platoon had stayed with the unit expecting huge loot in hte northern african cities) were getting their talismans ready it surely would be a beautiful charge.

meanwhile tenienete ferrari was sniping at a bren carrier sitting in the dessert. while it got shelled by artillery it was a race who could destroy it first.

The french crew had trouble getting it to run and was already jumping out abandoning it in the dessert.

Re: campaign scenario setup help
 

Teniente Ferrari wasted about 15 rounds of 37mm ammo on that bren carrier filling it with holes making all but the brave driver run away. hef inally got it running and drove away fast. Ferrari then saw the french infantry running away from their assembly point in the oasis they realy had been surprised and now tried to get out of the bombardment. unfortunatly for them they ran straight into the italian machine guns waiting for them on the ridge.

It was a pretty one sided afair.

meanwhile ten. moretti saw the feench exiting the oasis nd couldnt resist. He adjusted the feather on his cap and started running downhill screaming obscenities at the french the rest of his platoon followed his charge dreaming of the glory they would bring for the italian empire in africa taking this oasis.

Major de Lucca saw this lack of discipline froma few hundred meters behind the ridge he and the platoon of regular infantry that carried most of the heavy weapons still had to get up the ridge since they had been at the back of the colloumn. He just hopped these stupid black shirts would get themselves killed since they were actual quite good soldiers if they werent drunk or starting heroic charges into enemy machine guns.

Maybe this attack would make the french rout completely or it might cost him half his company...

Re: campaign scenario setup help
 

While he was adjusting the artillery fire Colonel Baggio heard the crew of the AT-Gun guarding the western side of the fort firing. What had happened he quickly sent an orderly to investigate.

As it turned out some jeeps had been spotted driving towards the fort at highspeed. appaently they had heard the news of the fighting and where hoping to take the fort in an coup de grace while its infantry was out attacking the oasis.

Baggio quickly ordered soem jeeps with machine guns to drive back to help defending the fort.

Meanwhile the italian militiamen continued their glorious charge one en stumbled and fell next to moretti who quickly hit the ground as he saw bullets impacting next to him. The vickers guns had found them. luckily this was only a short episode in the otherwise glorious charge. They ran and shot while the french ran and didnt shot back.

Re: campaign scenario setup help
 

Lombardi kicked in the door of the little mud hutoverlooking the oasis. traces of ashes showed where the french commander has burnt secret documents before escaping. They had left the wine though. quickly he and his men checked the building and after securing the area they investigated the food and drink stocks left behind.

There was still some fighting north of the oasis but basically all the french had been taken prisoners or had fled into the sahar dessert. probably they would come back the next days begging for water without their transports they are lost out here.

At the italain base colonel baggio had assembled his artillery troops to fire on the motorized attack from the north. They destroyed the lead jeeps and men looking like bedouins could be seen jumping out. it must be some special unit or maybe some local auxillaries he thought. quickly these units was turned back after they realised the defnses of the fort were well organised. they left a pair of burning jeeps taking with them their dead and wounded.

as the sun reached its highest point fighting had stopped everywhere. The few french troops still fighting surrendered after they saw the last bren carrier destroyed by grenades. there was just nothing they could do here anymore other the surrender.

Quickly the askari stripped them of any valuables they were carrying while the rest of the italians refreshed themselves in the oasis lake the fighting had made them thirsty.

Re: campaign scenario setup help
 

beautiful little scenario!