[FoW] Day of Days with "Speed Kills!"

So after I picked up the Wellington cohort guys at the airport, I hit the passenger seat. Instead of sleeping, I blathered... on and on.
However my teammate Pooch and I, as well as our mates Nick and Bob, who were running the ultimate Tiger and Puma list, were headed south!
Once we got there we had a great catchup with Craig and Ian and Robert while we wondered where Martin was.

Pooch and I's list. I ran TFA, Pooch ran the Tankies.
US Tanks (Confidently Trained!)
HQ- 2 M4 Shermans
Tank Troop- 4 M4 76mm Shermans
Tank Troop- 4 M4 75mm Shermans
Tank Troop- 4 M4 75mm Shermans
Armoured Mortar Platoon- 3 81mm Mortar tracks

Task Force A (Confidently Trained!)
HQ- 2 Greyhounds
TF Recon- 1 Greyhound, 2 Jeeps
TF TD Platoon- 4 M18 Hellcats
TF TD Platoon- 4 M18 Hellcats
TF Engineer Platoon- Full, 3 Bazookas
Corps Field Artillery Battery- 3 Priests, 2 50cal Halftracks

First game versus Dale and Nigel. Panthers, Pzkpfw IV's, Pumas, Pioneers and Panzergrenadiers.
First terrain error on our part, no bog check on an unelevated rail line.

My newly touched up Engineers on Rob St Denis' awesome table

A lurking Puma

Shermans mistakenly bogging on the railine, then Hummels fire a bombardment

Our 81's in direct fire support against Dale's Panzergrenadiers

Dale's haltracks and hamburgers on the hoof

Our Combat Engineers hiding in a wood after getting caned

Second game versus Kent and Ian. Panthers, Pzkpfw IV's and Panzergrenadiers.

Second terrain error, bocage looking stuff should have been bocage not hedges. We needed that LOS blocked

Trading shots with Panthers and Pzkpfw IV's

The opposition tanks run by Ian was well handled

We were putting the pressure on. But they kept saving!

After committing the first platoon of M18's we had to bring up the Combat Engineers to support them.

The 88's that threatened our right the whole test

Our unarmored masses jump forward and threaten some more!

The Cav trying to hold the flank is getting pasted! But they are making rolls and shooting!

They made seven platoon morale saves. We couldn't get a single point!

Third game Sunday morning. Craig and Martins Panther, Pzkpfw IV and Panzergrenadier list!

We got the terrain correct this time!

We were defending but our whole list is attack, attack, attack! With just TFA on table I was worried for a bit, but the whole rope-a-dope has always appealed to me. We had our Priests drop shells and everyone else hunkered down.
Until they got too close and offered us some StuH's

Of course they returned fire... ouch!

Oh yeah our OTHER platoon of Hellcats.

Sneaking shots between buildings

Just about to get hammered, the M18's that is

Luckily the tanks are here now! Covering our flank.

The bloody 'werfers!

That didn't take long...

Our last game was really cool as well. It was our bros from Chch. Andy and Jason and their awesome 21st Panzer lists. Lot's of ersatz Stugs and StuH's and Panzergrenadiers and Motorcycles and Von Luck!
We got stuck in early but a bunch of good rolling saved their asses. ;-)

It was a great comp and we had a very fun list to tank it up with. Rolling on day 1 sucked. But we soldiered on and didn't get stuck into the piss at noon, like our evil dice wanted us to. We had a proper lunch and coffees and continued to watch the dice desert us.

Gamer geek disease vector Mk1, or, 'where were you in 1976?'

I just got the 'Collectors Edition' of Dungeons and Dragons the first from an old friend who doesn't play anymore. Thanks DookieX! He has threatened to send me this for ten years.
This was definitely one of the things that created the perfect storm, to use another cliche, that got me fired up about gaming back in the seventies. Technically I started with the blue basic set and 1st got incorperated as we went along and finally into Advanced D&D.8P
In the same format of half page box set was Traveller in 1977.

Not just old school it's good reading folks! Wargaming roots are showing big time.

[Bolt Action] Near a vineyard, somewhere in Italy...

Had my first game of Bolt Action last night with Nathan. He has been playing his German list around a little bit vs Jamie and they looked like they were having fun so I was keen to try it out as well.
We decided on 700 points as that's about everything I have.;-)
The scenario was 'Maximum Attrition', you get the picture; enter the board and start smashing each other.
The board is a good mix of hedges and woods with a couple roads, somewhere in Italy was offered as a location?

Wehrmacht Sniper and spotter

 Nathan's army is thoroughly well designed and looks great. A mix of Warlord and Artizan mini's and a Company B Luchs. He also has a ton of panzerfausts and assault rifles!
He has a Lieutenant with Plt Sgt and RTO
Two squads of Veteran Panzergrenadiers with many assault rifles and a few panzerfausts
Two squads of Inexperienced Volksgrenadiers with the same
a sniper team
a PzKpw II Luchs Recce tank

USMC Scout/Sniper team

The game is easy to grasp and pretty fun. I like the dice based orders system it makes it very easy to manage and helps keep you from forgetting which units have acted.
My first kill was a veteran NCO by my Scout Sniper team on the right. (Sadly they spent the rest of the game celebrating this, as it was also their last. Very unprofessional guys.)

Grunts moving up on the left

My Water Buffalo was my only regular unit and it was opposed by the aforementioned Pz II. As soon as we started the LVT was trying to hide from the 48" range of the Lynx's 20mm cannon!

A frikkin tank!

The LVT actually survived the first bursts from the autocannon and tried to threaten the advancing Landsers on their right but couldn't get activated in time. Only one 90 degree turn per move as well. Remember that.;-)

Flamethrower team running from the Water Buffalo that's on fire!

There was nowhere to hide though.

Pushing up the middle

Taking advantage of the distraction provided by the flaming LVT my veteran Marines grab the center. They immediately begin taking heavy fire from their right for their insolence.

German Veterans advancing on our left

As Jerry advances on my left, I have to get my boys moving as well. The 24" range of the assault rifles matches my rifles range but with two dice each!

Veteran Landsers and VG advancing on our right

The inexperienced Volksgrenadiers have a special rule that may let them suddenly advance in experience. Maybe all the way to Veteran status. It never happened in this game though. I also never concentrated my fires enough to finish off a single VG squad. I was playing for position.

VG in the center

The VG as well as the sniper team in the center are providing constant harassing fire once we get into the wood on the left. Not very effective against my veterans though the sniper does bag a mortarman, leaving two Marines to handle the 60mm. I really dislike the light mortar rules so far. 12-24" range, only one die etc.

(I used to be an A-gunner on these things and we could fuck shit up let me tell you.)

Jarheads pushing onto the objective, now just hold it!

 On my left Nathan and I are trading casualties. One here, one there and the din would have been huge!

The Germans haven't gone far, but are a continuous line

Shooting is a single die for each rifle and goes up from there. Modifiers include moving (not for Yanks with M1's or BAR's though), cover (ignored by snipers), over half range as well as  inexperience.

The firing lines face off on the left

After finishing the Marine squad on the right the VG shift to the center

On the right my rifle squad was finished off by the huge volume of fire from the Luchs as well as the veteran infantry squad facing them. My sniper teams inability to get a single hit after the first was a bummer.

"Next turn we are going to waste that damn flamethrower team."

Chesty is merely security here

First we light up the VG's because they are in range, well one is in range. He burns. We roll and there is still some naplam left!

"Now we roast a Luchs!"

Guess what my, luckily, first activation is? That's right payback MFr! (120 odd points?)

Slugfest continues on the left

And we call it for time. Nathan has wiped out my LVT as well as a veteran Marine squad.

I have merely killed his Pz II. So a narrow victory for Nate and a fun game for both of us!

I'll be playing this again and now I know what I need to buff up and what I need to leave at home.

Klein Panzerfaust 30

Also known as Gretchen. Really.
The published ranges are interesting, this is from an OSS produced opposing forces manual.

 

1944 U.S. ARMY BULLETIN ABOUT THE PANZERFAUST: The great majority of
the German non-recoil weapons are devices known as Panzerfaust. There
are three of these—the little Panzerfaust klein 30 (formerly the
Faustpatrone I), the Panzerfaust 30 (formerly the Faustpatrone II),
and the Panzerfaust 60. The little Panzerfaust is called Gretchen for
short, while the 30 is known simply as Panzerfäuste. The tubes are
similar, and have a sight and firing mechanism. The tubes are 1 3/4
inches in diameter and 2 feet 7.5 inches long. The projectiles are
very large hollow charges. The charge for the Gretchen weighs 3
pounds, 4 ounces; that for the complete Panzerfaust weighs 6 pounds 14
ounces. Each projectile is mounted on a wooden tail rod fitted with
spring-steel vanes. These vanes wrap around the rod when the rod is
inserted in the muzzle of the launching tube, and spring out to guide
the projectile after firing. The tubes are expendable, and contain the
propelling charge fired by percussion. The range is very limited, and
is indicated by the designation (30 means 30 meters range, or 33
yards; 60, 66 yards). The operator must take cover after discharging a
projectile. Also, he must wear a helmet as protection against a rain
of fragments and debris, keep his eyes closed, and keep the front edge
of his helmet against the ground. The jet of flame to the rear is
fatal up to 10 feet; the operator must take this into account when
firing, and make sure that no walls or other obstacles will block the
jet. The tubes are held under the right arm. The left hand supports
the front of the tube, while the right hand is free to pull out the
safety pin, cock the striker, and press the release button. Sighting
is effected by aligning the top of the sight and the top edge of the
projectile. To date, all the Panzerfäuste have proved dangerous to the
user. It is believed that every effort will be made to improve
them—especially with regard to increasing the range. Armor penetration
is good; the Nazi and SS an propaganda claim as much as 7.9 inches for
the Panzerfaust 30. It is estimated that actual penetration is around
6 inches.

The trouble with Jerry...[Daily Panzerfaust]

Or, "Panzerfausts, Veteran Infantry and Stormtrooper moves, make him a tough nut old boy."

Translation of caption follows. (with artistic license after Google)

30th October, 1944 Memel, Prussia (Lithuania). 
Sd.Kfz. 251 / 9 Ausf D armored personnel carriers, (7.5 cm 37 L/24 gun), and landsers of Panzergrenadier Division "GrossDeutschland" prepare for the counter-attack to retake a town occupied by the Soviets in the Memel bridgehead. Photo: Otto war correspondent, 30/10/44 [Release Date] Transocean Europapress German Federal Archives Photo 146-1995-081-15A

Your Panzerfaust has returned to normal service.

This is another hopeful flyer from December '44.
'The panzerfaust is your antitank gun!' another improvement in an excellent idea that won't save the Third Reich. Or for that matter, Germany, which would be divided for the next 45 years.
This fact actually goes right into my early wargaming career.

To segue massively, well, I've been travelling. (Where have you been Adam?)
Awesome, as usual, Earthdawn game Thurs w Jamie et al!
Yes, I plan on being at Conquest, with flamethrowers(!) you effing min-maxers, look it's only 'cool' when I do it.
Asked... 'If you were infantry, why would you play cav?' Well, I mentioned in earlier posts my affinity for Celine as well as the fact that, I WAS IN the Marine Corps infantry. Any good questions?;-)
More tomorrow...

Achtung! Feuerstrahl!

Your monthly panzerfaust by another name. Evidently written on the tube of most of these late model panzerfausts modelled in a museum in Helsinki.

Your monthly panzerfaust

These guys are in for a hard day I can tell. I'm not sure which unit these panzergrenadiers are from but by the one overwhite jacket and the splinter pattern smock it's winter '43 at least. (Duh! read the German archive dates. Feb 1945)
Ever read "The Forgotton Soldier" by Guy Sajer? No, you should.

In totally unrelated news.
We played our first game of Earthdawn tonight! First RPGing from me in a year and a half! My rolling was crap as usual and it resulting in my near death, as usual for my characters at first level.
All is good in the world.;-)

Your daily panzerfaust.

This one is priceless.

Rough translation, if you have a better one post it.
"The heaviest tank catches on fire, if you take them with your panzerfaust!"

Today's panzerfaust

This is what keeps me up at night. Worrying about Jerry squatting in a hedgerow with a panzerfaust, a cheap knockoff of our 2.36" M1 "Stovepipe" Rocket Launcher.