The Long Road North

The George Washington pub does a fantastic meal, plus the locals are a nice bunch too. So, suitably fortified, we returned for our third game of Bolt Action.

Game 3 - Assault at Chateau Wartone
This would be a straightforward fight representing the Allied push inland on the 7th June. As George had won game 2 (by a whisker!) he, as the attacker, would have a more flexible deployment. We also swapped sides for a bit of variety. I would be leading a large gruppe of Panzergrenadiers whilst George fielded his lovely British force.

The field of battle with our initial deployments.

A Stug and a Churchill play cat and mouse...

Being a huge piece of scenery I don't often get the chateau on the table. It's okay, but the grounds need a little more "shrubbery" and the chateau is definitely going to get a re-paint - it's way too pink and the painting is a bit shonky in places.

Chateau Wartone :-D

I decided that I would quickly invest the cafe and make it a fortress! Sounds good "in theory" doesn't it?

Hans... mine's a latte

George's enhanced deployment options meant that he could start bring up his reserves in turn 1 whereas I'd have to await turn 2. So on rumbles his Sherman.

British infantry advance either side of the road under the watchful eye of the Churchill commander. Both George and I realise the cafe will be a key feature of the battle.

The British advance on the cafe, can they beat the Germans to it?

All four tanks are on the table now so expect a good exchange of whizz-bangs!

All four AFVs battle it out!

The Stug (see below) has manoeuvred around the cafe to put a round in to the Churchill. It's a hit but those forced workers are making dud shells for the Reich and it bounces off, still it's a pin. The Panzer and Sherman blast away to no effect.

The Churchill is hit, pinned but otherwise undamaged

It was my turn to whoop with joy as George rolled a 1 for his artillery support. It landed in a nearby field blasting a small herd of pigs into finely minced lardons. On target it would have torn my flank to shreds.

Allied artillery goes wide

The action at the cafe is hotting up. The Germans have taken up residency whilst almost a whole platoon of British infantry converges on its stout walls.

The British quickly bring up more men

Next turn and the first dice out of the bag is a nice shiny black one! The Stug loads another AP shell and blasts the Churchill... which brews up nicely. Take that Tommy!

Bang! The Stug despatches the Churchill!

But George wastes no time in settling the score with a fantastic shot from his Sherman which punches a smoking hole right through the Panzer IV's turret. So it's one all in the tank duel.

Bang! The Sherman despatches the Panzer IV!

With the loss of the Panzer IV I had to concede the left flank. One squad and a sniper (in the farmhouse) were of little use against the armoured might of George's Sherman. Plus he had men moving up that flank too. The battle would be decided around the cafe.

A quiet left flank and a hectic right

Two squads held the cafe, with the CO nearby, plus there was a squad in the fields behind (just out of shot) so in terms of firepower I held the advantage. But George dropped a mortar shot right on the squad in the fields then his sniper took out the LMG so a few shell-shocked chaps with a heap of pins and just rifles were not going to be much help. The balance was shifting in George's favour.

Things were hotting up around the cafe!

Back on my left flank I decided that the sniper would harry the advancing British whilst my squad made a Benny Hill style dash along the road. They'd probably be too late to help at the cafe but it was worth a shot.

I'm not sure what the German is for "Leggit lads" but their NCO is shouting it as loud as he can! Although they were still too far away to help out their comrades.

To give my troops a better arc of fire against the massing British I moved my men out of the building itself in to the yard with it's solid stone walls, but the additional -1 to hit meant most of my shooting went wide and in return the British poured everything they had in to area.

With time drawing on we called it a day and totted up the order dice. Two for me and five for George, so a solid Allied win. Their attack had been a success and the road inland lay open.

It was a great finale to a superb series of loosely linked games. That's all you have to do, I think, in order to add an extra dimension to your games. You don't need complex campaign rules that track officer's opinions, the state of the men's boots, the weather, etc. Just find a narrative link and tweak each game based on who won the last. Obviously an excellent opponent is essential and George provided that most admirably!

The Allied version of events can be found here http://musingswargameslife.blogspot.com/2018/08/1944-to-577.html