Firestorm: Red Thunder

This is going to be a quick report. Factually, I don't know when the site locks, so it may not count. BH and I repeated the last fight - T55 battalion against Leo Is. BH wanted to see if more cautious play at start made a difference.

Different map, Assault Map H "Immerreid". Imagine the East German tanks climbing out of the Rhine valley to the east, meeting elements of 3rd Panzer rushing to stop them

We played annihilation again. BH probably would have wanted a billiard table but Map H is one with center spine. We dealt with it with spearheads; he deployed first and put a spearhead onto the south end of the ridge. I countered with a spearhead in the center. He tried to spearhead on the north end and BOTH Luchs failed cross checks on the stream. I pushed a BRDM team up the north map edge. Since I was deploying second, he had to commit first and decided to place a unit on the south saddle of the ridge. I countered with one T55 company. Now he had to think, and decided to place a Leo platoon with the Luchs in the north. My second company went in the center, and he matched with a platoon in cover there. Third company stretch along the stream on my side of the ridge, linking my two companies. He finished up by placing his remaining platoons, one in the center behind a low ridge and the other in the main town itself.

First turn - BH got the nod, and then wrestled with himself about shooting at my BMP platoon. In hindsight, I should have kept them out of sight but as it turned out they would work wonderfully as bait. He decided to sit tight, but this proved an error - His thinking that I couldn't get a clear shot at his No.1 Company's 1st Platoon was mistaken.

I blitzed successfully with my No.3 Company and with a net of seven hexes of movement was able to bring six tanks to bear from either higher ground or the woods, hitting 5+ and 3 other tanks were hitting 6+. 2 tanks shot one Luchs at 5+. A Luchs died as did the entire Leo I platoon. The Luchs passed morale.

Turn 2 NATO - BH was surprised at how quickly things changed in the south. He did a mental calculation and decided to move south with his entire force. Unfortunately he could also calculate what the BMPs would do to his force so he decided to shoot them up on the way. A blitz seemed smart, after all it worked for me, and he failed his first attempt. A recitation of the penalty for failing (+1 to hit, no dash) convinced him not to attempt it with the other unit. Six shots at 6+ and 6 shots at 5+ proved overkill as all three BMPs burned merrily, and in consequence denied me some good firing positions next turn.

BH also had learned to points grub and went after my BRDMs. Here he got lucky, rolling a single hit, getting a bail, which converted into failed morale.

At the south end, trees blocked LOS for two of his Leos and so he rolled 4 dice at two Leos concealed by wrecked vehicles and/or hull down from his perspective. I tossed a '5' and bailed; the other tank fireballed. He had killed or bailed 7 targets. Didn't look bad.

BUT...

I successfully blitzed BOTH companies on the center ridge. This allowed all 10 tanks of No.2 Company to shoot at +1 for moving, as well as two tanks from No.1. I took the risk of pushing over the hill and down slope to maximize shooters. 2 dice at 4+ and 9 dice at 5+ wrecked 5 tanks. The cherry on the sundae was a lucky shot from my battalion commander, which destroyed West Deutche No.2 company commander

On the south end of the ridge, I failed blitz so I ducked behind the hill top and sleezed my way around the woods, I was trying to tease him out to massacre No.1 Company's 2nd Platoon

BH decided that his best choice was ignoring the tease, hiding his remaining Luchs platoon, and trying to gun me down as I fired on his concealed, gone-to-ground tanks. Unfortunately for him, he had to adjust tank positions to accommodate the arrival of 1st Platoon 2nd Company. So, this turn only, he wasn't gone to ground. The lone surviving tank of 3rd Platoon 1st Company slid up the road, firing two shots over its rear deck to no effect.

This time No.3 company made the blitz, and I pushed five tanks forward while 4 tanks with shots overhead to Immenreid fired support. 5 tanks hitting 6s managed two hits while 4 tanks hitting 5s managed two hits as well. One of No.2 platoon, First Company survived as bailed. The company commander did not.

Meanwhile I chased the Luchs with my No.2 Company, cutting their easy escape. Part of No.1 company took up firing positions looking south and cut down the survivor from No.3 Platoon , No.1 Company. No.1 company burned the bailed Leo, survivors mounting the rear deck of their only vehicle, the Luchs.

Rather than drag this out, he resigned. 4-3, PACT

HOT WASH

BH and I briefly discussed this. In Annihilation, the name of the game is kills. BH didn't need to spread out as much as he did, and when he belatedly realized I was going to destroy his force in detail, he tried to maneuver. Even with +1 to hit, 10 T55s will hit an average of 3 times, and this will destroy a platoon.

I reminded him also to count on an enemy blitz move when trying to stay in cover, or protect a flank.

Anyway, we had some fun.

Hence the lopsided box score, 15 Leo Is for 1 T55.