Operation Martlet Scenario 1: Probe at Fontenay (game 2)

The opening game of the campaign turned out to be a very brief affair. The deployment of the British platoon was hampered severely by the thick morning mist and matters were made only worse when a PzIV made short work of a Sherman Firefly. The knocked out tank sits on the table for this second game as a reminder of the dangers lurking ahead.

However, things are not quite as bad as they appear. The mist may have forced a delay but other than that the British have not suffered any permanent casualties. Rather than lose a turn and wait for the third game of the campaign for the mist to lift they regroup immediately for a renewed attempt to drive the enemy back. There are good reasons to try to maintain momentum as the Germans face their own problems - for the first five games of the campaign they must try to deploy through the effects of a particularly heavy pre-game barrage. 

In the previous game the Firefly was knocked out by an entrenched PzIV. 

As historically these games occur only hours apart we will keep the entrenchment on the table for this second game. Whether it is still occupied by a tank will remain unknown for now, but at least the British have an idea a threat could emerge from there (and yes, I did make an empty tank scrape for moments like this!). 

As per the campaign notes the jump-off-points on this table remain as they were at the end of the first game.

The British have fourteen support points and I decide to stick with my original plan to lead the way with armour. Support will come in the form of an M4 Sherman, a Firefly and an Adjutant. 

We begin with British force morale at eleven while the Germans are at nine. That high morale should allow the British to maintain the tempo of the assault even if losses are suffered. 

They have the opening phase and it begins well. Their first section deploys successfully near the farmhouse and the corporal puts both teams on overwatch. 

A second section also deploys successfully, this time into the ground level of the farmhouse. 

They take up overwatch positions facing out towards the crossroads. 

The platoon sergeant sets out to join them but he is lost in the mist and won't be able to attempt to deploy again until the following turn. I can't complain, this is a much brighter start than the British experienced during the first game.

In the German phase one of their squads deploys successfully through the barrage. They appear in the barn at the main farm with one MG42 team taking up position facing out towards the recently deployed British section. 

Their platoon in this campaign is under strength and with only six men and a junior leader the squads can be quite brittle. At this point I note that Dave has taken the wise move of using one of his support options to draft in five additional riflemen to disperse among the squads to increase numbers. 

Fortunately for the British the barn has only one window facing toward them allowing only a single MG42 team to take that position. Nonetheless, the squad's scharführer uses the German characteristic maschinengewehr to maximise the amount of fire that they can pour onto the British section.

They are caught in open ground and the rifle team loses one man and both teams suffer shock. First blood of the campaign goes to the Germans but the British are fortunate, it could have been worse.

 

The section is on overwatch and they return fire.

Despite their hard cover the Germans suffer three kills and a point of shock. However it's at this point the British discover the Germans have strengthened this building and turned it into a bunker, so the first kill will be ignored. Nonetheless that's a result neither of us expected and those are casualties the Germans can ill afford. 

The platoon's oberscharführer (senior leader) attempts to join the men in the barn but he fails to find a way through the barrage.

In the British phase the platoon's 2” mortar team makes a welcome appearance beside the farmhouse. I'm hoping a well placed round of smoke will blind the Germans in the barn. 

The round lands on target and blocks the line of sight. That's a relief and should enable the section in the open to move to cover before it can be fired on again.

 

The corporal rallies a point of shock and orders the section to move at the double to the wall.

They don't quite reach it but do come close enough to be concealed from the the barn should the smoke disappear.

The following German command roll is 55531 which quickly adds CoC points. That's something I sense could be critical in these games. A timely interrupt or ambush could have a major influence on the outcome. 

A second German squad deploys successfully on their left flank. They are entrenched by the barn and placed on overwatch. 

For the moment that will put a stop to any thoughts I might have of sending that British section over the wall.

The following British command roll is 66431 and the double phase is very welcome. Can I make the most of it? The M4 Sherman arrives through the mist and immediately targets the barn. 

A well placed round of HE smashes into the farm building and the Germans suffer shock and another casualty.

The British section then moves right up to the wall, ready to clamber over should it become safe to do so. 

Unfortunately the platoon's lieutenant is lost in the mist and so he joins the platoon sergeant wandering in the gloom in search of their command. Hopefully they will have more luck finding the platoon in the second turn.

The section in the farmhouse has line of sight to the tank scrape and so the 2” mortar team fires smoke in that direction.

Without a direct line of sight themselves the mortar team's aim is not as good as it might be. The smoke round misses and lands on the jump-off-point beyond the tank scrape.

The following German command roll is 66631 which creates an interesting turn of events. Not only will it bring a double phase, the turn end will lift the restriction the pregame barrage has put on German deployment. That's a worrying development for the British. Fortunately the barrage is still in effect for this phase and when the Germans attempt to deploy the PzIV it fails. 

In the barn the MG42 team drop down to the ground level, no doubt to try and avoid the attentions of the Sherman. 

When the turn ends all the smoke is removed. If there is any consolation the start of a new turn will mean the British can make a second attempt to deploy the platoon's two senior leaders. 

For now the British section is safe behind the high farm wall, but with the smoke gone it would be very unwise for them to consider climbing over just yet.

Things begin to look more ominous when the next German command roll is 66653. Not only another double phase it also sees them acquire a full CoC die. To make matters worse now the PzIV has no problem deploying and as I had suspected it was still concealed in the tank scrape. 

The tank commander controls the gunner's fire and orders him to target the Sherman. He needs only a 4 to hit and to my relief and Dave's consternation he rolls a 2. 

That's a lucky escape and for now at least the Sherman survives.

The following command roll is 65422 which will see the run of German phases end and to my relief it won't see the PzIV commander activate in this phase.

The platoon's oberscharführer deploys behind the main farm. 

He puts the two teams of the nearby entrenched squad on overwatch. 

He then orders the squad to leave the barn.

When the British phase arrives the command roll is 64421. This presents me with a real dilemma. I could try to deploy the Sherman Firefly. If it can hit the PzIV it has a very good chance of knocking it out, but.... it may not make it through the mist. If that happens there is no opportunity for the M4 Sherman to act. I'm guaranteed being able to activate the M4 but there's only a 50% chance of deploying the Firefly. I think it's a case of the bird in the hand with this one and so I decide to activate the commander of the Sherman. I think the best option is to hope for a hit on the PzIV, if that's unsuccessful then I'm hoping the 2” mortar team can drop a round of smoke to block the line of sight.

While that seems like a decent plan I've forgotten one critical thing - the Germans have a full CoC die and before the Sherman can fire off a round of AP the PzIV commander interrupts and the tank opens fire.

This time it makes no mistake and hits the target. Inflicting six AP strikes which the Sherman's armour is unable to resist. It is knocked out and explodes taking British force morale down to eight. The table is turning into a tank graveyard! 

On reflection, perhaps it might have been worth taking a gamble on deploying the Firefly? Had it been successful it would have been able to fire off at least one round of AP without the PzIV interrupting. Too late now.

The platoon sergeant's second attempt to deploy succeeds and he joins the 2” mortar team. He orders them to send a smoke round towards the PzIV.

This time it lands on target.

That's effective enough, but sadly it's too late for the Sherman crew.

Fortune is favouring the Germans today and their next command roll is 66442 and another double phase. With the threat of the Sherman removed the panzergrenadier squad heads back to the barn.

In the following phase one of the squad's LMG teams returns to their former position in the upper level.

The following British command roll is 66542 and it's their turn to try to exploit a double phase. The platoon sergeant has the 2” mortar team send another smoke round towards the barn.

He then moves forward to catch up with the section near the wall and once close to them he rallies off a point for shock. 

With one German squad tied up covering the flank by the barn and the other in the barn itself I sense there might be an opportunity for the British to push forward. I suspect the Germans have only a single squad left to deploy and that might be an opportunity to try and make some ground. The section in the farmhouse moves out into the field. 

In the next British phase the platoon sergeant orders the 2” mortar team to fire more smoke to help cover the advance across the field. 

I was hoping to block the crossroads and make it difficult for any Germans deploying from the jump-off-point on that flank from targeting the open field. Unfortunately the smoke was off target although it does fall around the PzIV and block all of its line of sight in that direction, so it wasn't totally wasted.

The sergeant then moves up to join the section and rally off more shock.

The section in the field moves forward tactically. 

The platoon's third section deploys successfully through the mist and takes up overwatch positions in the upper level of the farmhouse to help cover the other section's advance across the field. 

With the full platoon deployed the British are now in a much better position to press forward. My main concern is dealing with the PzIV. For now it is blinded by the smoke but hopefully I can find a way to deploy both the PIAT team and the Firefly to deal with it.

Dave senses that the advantage may be swinging towards the British. He has one squad tied down guarding the flank, the other is in the barn but it cannot effectively block any British advance towards the centre or the other flank. That leaves only his tank and the still to be deployed squad to handle that threat. He's certainly in a position to cause the British a few problems but he's also running the risk of losing his very valuable PzIV if there's an unexpected turn end that sees the smoke lift and the Firefly come into action (although at this stage he's guessing I have the Firefly, I could equally have other supports like the Churchill AVRE). Having delayed the British for one turn he decides he won't risk any further losses and announces that the Germans will withdraw while they are in good shape.

Casualties have been light on both sides. The British have one man who is wounded and will miss the next game. Those light casualties see the men's opinion rise to +2. The CO takes a much high opinion of the success and his opinion rises to +1.

The Germans suffered three casualties and so one returns immediately, one is lost permanently and the other is wounded. Despite the relatively light casualties the men's opinion drops to -1 and the withdrawal sees the CO's opinion drop to 0.

With that we will move on to the second map and see if the British can maintain their tempo and continue driving the Germans back. You can read what happens in that game in this post.

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You can find all the game reports for this campaign and for many others on the Chain of Command AAR page.

Operation Martlet Scenario 1: Probe into Fontenay

This is the first game in the Operation Martlet campaign for Chain of Command. I will be playing the British and attacking the Germans who are commanded by my regular opponent Dave.

This opening scenario sets up an interesting situation where both sides will find their deployment hampered in different ways. The British will commit a platoon from the 11th Royal Scots Fusiliers. They face a thick morning mist which could disorient units as they make their way to the start line. The Germans from the 26th SS Panzergrenadier Regiment could find their deployment disrupted as the result of a particularly heavy pre-game barrage. Both of those make the outcome of the scenario very unpredictable. 

Time is on the side of the Germans and so any delays imposed on the British work in their favour. On the other hand if the mist does little to impede the British and the Germans have a difficult time making their way through the pregame barrage this map could fall quickly. In that sense this game could easily go either way.

One factor to consider is that the position of all jump-off-points as they are at the end of this game will be their location for any following games on this map. That means that even if the British fail to take the table at the first attempt there could be something to gain from moving one of their jump-off-points forward or perhaps capturing a German one.

Given all that, I've identified a few possible objectives the British might be able to attain even if they don't manage to take the table at the first attempt. Much will depend on how the game pans out.

I know the Germans have armour, but they don't have much of it. If I can try to write down their tanks early in the campaign it may make things easier as we progress. With that in mind I'm looking at calling on support in the form an M4 Sherman and a Sherman Firefly. 

If those tanks fail to make an appearance through the mist then my second objective will be to focus on jump-off-points. 

It’s tempting to push forward with the aim of capturing one or more enemy jump-off-points. That's an opportunity that might arise should the pre-game barrage prevent the Germans deploying fast enough to stop me. Alternatively, if I can gather enough points for a CoC die I will also look at the option to move a British jump-off-point as far forward as possible. The one thing I'm determined not to do is attack aggressively without an adequate force.

My plan for the patrol phase is to use three markers and push fast on the right flank in the hope of positioning a jump-off-point in the farmhouse or behind the wall.

The British have three free moves at the beginning of the patrol phase and that proves enough to ensure there is a jump-off-point in the farmhouse. It’s about as far forward as the British are likely to position one, so I sense that's a good start.

I intend to lead the way with armour and so the thirteen support points are used to call on a M4 Sherman and a Firefly. The key question is, will they turn up?

Force morale begins with the Germans at nine and the British at eight. That's a less auspicious start than I would have liked. With the higher force morale the Germans have the opening phase, however they choose to hold off their deployment until they see what the British have planned.

In the British phase both the Sherman and one of the infantry sections fail to find their way through the mist. That doesn't bode well. I was really hoping that between both Shermans I could deal with a lone PzIV should one appear.

The following German command roll is 66421 heralding a double phase. With their deployment uncertain Dave holds off committing any of his force just yet. The following command roll is 66214 and despite the temptation to try and close down a British jump-off-point he refrains once again. The run of phases ends with the next command roll but again the Germans choose to bide their time. 

Even with the benefit of hindsight it's not easy to see how the Germans could have capitalised on that run of phases and closed down the nearest British jump-off-point. First, they have to deploy successfully through the barrage. Assuming they do so at the first attempt, it would require at least three phases to get there and most likely more. At no stage was Dave aware what the next command roll would bring so the risk of finding a squad caught in the open and exposed to British fire was not one worth taking. 

The British on the other hand have no reason to hold back, but once again the mist puts a stop to those plans. A second section fails to appear, as does the platoon's 2” mortar team. That's now 60% of the platoon lost in the mist in the first turn. I have a horrible feeling this may be a very short game. 

On a brighter note there is one successful deployment, but I fear it may be too little and too late. The Sherman Firefly makes its way through the mist and the gunner is placed on overwatch.

The platoon's PIAT team also arrive and they deploy into the farmhouse on the British right flank.

Fortune favours the Germans once again with a command roll of 66421. This time they do show themselves and a concealed, dug-in PzIV appears near the crossroads. 

The commander helps aim the gun, which is just as well as the hit roll was only 4 which was the minimum required to hit the Firefly.

There are five AP strikes and the Firefly's armour can only negate one of those. The tank is knocked out. Fortunately it doesn't explode and the crew make good their escape but it’s enough to see British morale drop two points to six. 

Game over? I suspect so.

Having dispatched the Sherman with relative ease the Germans have no other targets and in their next phase they choose to sit and wait.

Come the British phase it's plain to see the writing on the wall. There really is no point continuing, so I elect to withdraw and start afresh. It's a small setback, after all. Other than the delay of a campaign turn the British suffered no long term losses. The Scots Fusilier platoon barely made an appearance and the allied arsenal can quickly replace the damaged Firefly.

The mist is a nuisance but it results in only a minor delay and one that was not entirely unexpected. The jump-off-points are as well positioned as they could be, I just need the units themselves to turn up next time. I have the option to simply skip the next campaign turn and wait for the mist to clear, but I'm determined to press on. So rather than lose a campaign turn without the chance to inflict any losses on the Germans we will try again in campaign turn two.

The low casualties on both sides means there is little impact on the opinions of men or COs. The German men's opinion is 0 and their CO's rises to +1. As for the British the men's opinion actually rises (there were no casualties after all!) and is now +1, although the CO takes a dimmer view of events and his opinion drops to -1.

So we move on to game two and the AAR for that game can be found in this post.

If you've enjoyed following along and would like to Buy Me a Coffee to help cover some of the costs of running the blog you can click through at the link or on the tab in the right hand column of this page.

You can find all the game reports for this campaign and for many others on the Chain of Command AAR page.