KG Klink in Greece, Fight #6

All,

Morning, 12 April 1941

Here we are, continuing Kampfgruppe Klink's campaign in Greece.  The first battle saw Captain Freitag's 1st Schutzen Battlegroup take a key mountain crossroads manned by members of the British Royal Engineers supported by Armored Cavalry from New Zealand.  The fight saw the Germans infantry nearly eliminate the Commonwealth battlegroup, which fell back in disarray.  Captain Freitag pressed his advantage, immediately pursuing south down, where it ran into defensive positions manned by the remnants of the New Zealand 21st Infantry Battalion.  1st Schutzen then evicted the NZ 21st Inf Bn from its positions, forcing them to fall back.  The third fight saw 1st Lt Ginter's 2nd Schutzen moving secure a crossing over the D3 bridge, forcing the 27th MG Battalion back.  The fourth fight saw Major Bohm's 2nd Recce Battlegroup push back the Australian 2nd Battalion, 8th Infantry Regiment after some fierce fighting.  The fifth battle saw Captain Freitag's beleaguered 1st Schutzen Battlegroup defend the B3 bridgehead against attacks by the British Rangers/9th King's Royal Rifle Corps, and the Royal Engineers/New Zealand Cavalry, pushing the former back and destroying the latter!  Now we turn to Battlegroup Wehner (1st Recce) attacking the Lee Force/Australian 2nd Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment, in order to keep them from interfering in the battle further south between Lt Loeb's Panzers and the Allies' 4th Hussars.

Overview, north is left.  This is a meeting engagement, so the Germans will enter from the north and the Allies from the south, with both sides entering on their own table edge.  The road is improved (at least in terms of 1941 Greece), there is a small hamlet consisting of three stone buildings at top left, a few patches of trees scattered about, and a piece of a river that cannot be crossed, but the dominant terrain feature is the hilltops dotting the countryside (clockwise from bottom left): Hill 275 (bottom left), Hill 319 (top left), Hill 112 (top right), Hill 450 (bottom right), and Hill 136 (center bottom).

I'm playing with very simple terrain so that I can lay it down and scrape it up as quickly as possible, to get in a lot of games as quickly as possible.

I'm playing solo using Too Fat Lardies' Chain of Command, modified a bit.  I've bumped it up a level (using multi-based stands, not individual troops), I simplified fire and melee combat, and morale (5Core concepts, as always), as well as movement (I like dicing for movement, but it significantly slows things down for me).  I changed the CoC Dice so that it represents indirect supporting fires from Higher HQ, and I did away with the Patrol Phase.  I love the Patrol Phase, but it doesn't work for me playing solo, so what I do is designate an attacker and a defender; both sides start completely off table, using their Command Dice to deploy on table (as normal), but where it differs is that I basically give the defender a deployment area of half the table, and he can deploy anywhere in that area, even dug in, so long as it's at least 6" from any attacker.

If you're now wondering, then, why do I still call these rules "Chain of Command," it's because the entire game revolves around the use of Chain of Command's brilliant activation system (command roll/Command Dice), the use of leaders' command initiative, and the 'Force Morale' concept of declining Command Dice and morale to breaking.  To me, that's the heart of the system, and it makes for a fun game.

The opposing forces, with Germans on the left and Commonwealth on the right.

I'm playing these games in 10mm using figures from Pendraken and Minifigs UK, roads from Fat Frank, hills from Warzone, buildings from Crescent Root, rivers from Wargamers Terrain, and trees from Gunner at Signifer.

Battlegroup Wehner (AKA, 1st Recce): consists of the CO stand (far left), one motorcycle rifle platoons (a Platoon Commander and four rifle squads), a weapons platoon (Platoon Commander, two 7.5cm Infantry Guns, and two Pak-36 anti-tank guns), a platoon of two armored cars, and a platoon of three tanks (two Panzer IIs and one Pz I).
*Screwed up there, should have been three Pz IIs, not two Pz IIs and one Pz I...

1st Lt Wehner (veteran of Poland, France, and now Greece, winner of the Iron Cross 2nd Class)   

2nd Motorcycle Platoon - SSgt Gradl (IC1 and 2)

1st Motorcycle Squad - SSgt Behrendt (IC2)

2nd Motorcycle Squad - Sgt Eisen 

3rd Motorcycle Squad - Cpl Obst 

4th Motorcycle Squad - Cpl Klostermann 

Weapons Platoon - Sgt Oberlander (IC2)
IG1 - LCpl Groen
IG2 - LCpl Graehme
PaK1 - Cpl Drexler (IC2)
PaK2 - LCpl Boxleitner

Armored Reconnaissance Platoon - 2nd Lt Weider

3rd Armored Reconnaissance Vehicle - Sgt Pichler (IC2)

1st Panzer Platoon - Sgt Keck (IC2)

Vehicle Two - Cpl Gruden 

Vehicle Three - Cpl Neuer 

The Commonwealth force: Lee Force and Australian 2nd Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment

Commanding Officer: Major Darby

Rifle Platoon (Platoon Commander, three Rifle Sections, a 2" mortar, and a Boyes Anti-Tank Rifle)

Tank Platoon (1 x A10 Cruiser, 2 x Matilda I)

Weapons Platoon (Platoon Commander, two Vickers MGs, and two 3" mortars)

Time to fight!  Normally the attacker goes first, but as this is a meeting engagement, I held a simple roll-off and the Allies are going first.  The Allies bring their Weapons Platoon (machine guns and mortars) onto Hill 450.

On the German side, Lt Weider's two armored cars roll straight down main street  (left top) as the Commanding Officer, Lt Wehner, brings the German Weapons Platoon on.  The Infantry Guns move onto Hill 275 (bottom left) while the PaKs move towards Hill 136 (left).

The infantry guns unlimber on Hill 275 (bottom left) as the PaKs move up and shelter behind Hill 136 (center).

As the German armored cars split off, left and right.

*Seriously impacting the Allies' potential deployment zone, though also leaving the armored cars very vulnerable.

Sgt Pichler's vehicle engages the Commonwealth troops atop Hill 450...

Knocking out one of the Vickers MG teams!

Then the German IGs (bottom center) get into the act, launching 75mm HE shells at Hill 450...

Knocking out the other Aussie MG team and pinning their CO!

*The Allies are already losing Command Dice and Force Morale.  The Germans are also living the easy life, taking three phases in a row!

SSgt Gradl, a bona fide hero (won the Iron Cross 2nd Class in Poland and the 1st Cross in France) leads his Motorcycle Platoon into the fight, skirting around the east side of Hill 319 (top center left, with the armored cars at far right).

This is answered by the British bringing their tanks on astride the road, and the Australian Rifle Platoon into some nearby trees.

The Cruiser opens fire on Lt Weider's Sdkfz 231, but totally misses!

As the two Matilda Is open fire on Sgt Pichler's Sdkfz 222...

The armored car is knocked out and the crew bails, with Sgt Pichler becoming slightly wounded in the process.

The Aussie mortars on Hill 450 (bottom right) range in on the German anti-tank guns sheltering behind Hill 136 (top left)...

And they're on the money, pinning one of the gun crews.

The German CO, Lt Wehner, ralleys the ATGs (far left) as the IGs (bottom left) engage the Australian mortars (top right) on Hill 450...

They're a bit long and only manage to pin a single mortar team.

Having rallied, the German PaKs move out to the right flank (top center, from bottom left), looking to get onto the British tanks' flank (off camera to far left).

SSgt Gradl pushes his Motorcycle Platoon all the way up to the treeline (top center) as Sgt Keck leads the Panzer Platoon in behind them.

As Lt Weider turns his 20mm gun (far left) on the Cruiser (top center, with the Matildas at top right and Sgt Pichler's burning Sdkfz 222 at bottom right) and returns fire...

The 20mm rounds ricochet harmlessly off the British tank, so Lt Weider orders his driver to duck them in behind a nearby tree-covered knoll (center bottom, from left).

The German PaKs moved to the flank (far left) from Hill 36 (center top left), but the Aussie mortars (bottom right) tracked them the entire way and now they're engaging...

Knocking out LCpl Boxleitner's anti-tank gun, though the men are okay.

The Aussie Rifle Platoon takes up position in the woods as the British Tank Platoon moves right.

Where they (bottom) engage Sgt Keck's Panzer Platoon (top center)...

The British tanks continue right, and continue engaging Sgt Keck's tanks (top left)...

And this time Sgt Keck's vehicle is knocked out!  The crew bails out, and Sgt Keck is lightly wounded but otherwise okay, while Cpl Gruden's panzer is pinned.

The Australian mortars (bottom right) continue pounding the German anti-tank platoon (far left, with the German CO above them, the British tanks at top center, and the Aussie Rifle Plt at far right), to no effect.

The Aussie Rifle Platoon (bottom center) opens fire on the German Infantry Guns atop Hill 275 (top left), suppressing one of the gun crews.

With danger close by, Lt Weider orders his driver to peek out ,and they take a shot on the flank of the lead Matilda I with their 20mm cannon at point blank range...

The tank commander is killed, the vehicle is immobilized, and the crew bails out, as the other Matilda I becomes pinned!!!

The German CO, Lt Wehner, rallies the Infantry Gun position (left) as the remaining PaK moves back to Hill 136 (top right, from bottom right).

As the German Infantry Guns (bottom center) open fire on the Aussie mortars on Hill 450 (top center right)...

Suppressing one mortar team and pinning the other, though their Platoon Commander (also pinned) quickly rallies them.

*I accidentally cheated for the Allies, shouldn't have let the PC rally the tubes while being pinned, supposed to clear himself first...

Major Darby finally arrives on the field of battle, coming in behind his tanks to bolster their morale (far right).

Freshly rallied, the Aussie mortars (bottom right) immediately get right back to work, engaging the German Infantry Gun position (top left)...

LCpl Graehme's gun is knocked out, although he is okay, while LCpl Groen's crew is suppressed!

Major Darby attempts to rally his pinned Matilda I, but they're not having it and stay pinned!

As the Cruiser pushes east and turns the corner, catching SSgt Gradl's Motorcycle in the open, still mounted!  The Cruiser's main gun and machine guns roar...

And it's ugly: SSgt Gradl's command element is chopped to bits; he himself is badly wounded and is out for the remainder of the campaign in Greece.  Three of the four rifle squads are suppressed.

*German Command Dice and Force Morale take a hit with SSgt Gradl going down.

The remaining German anti-tank gun moves east, nearing Hill 319 (top right), as the CO rallies the Infantry Gun position yet again (bottom left).

And LCpl Groen's gun (bottom left) keeps banging away at the Australian mortar position on Hill 450 (top right)...

The 75mm rounds manage to silence one of the 3" tubes!

Back on the left with the leaderless Motorcycle Platoon, Cpl Klostermann orders his 4th Squad to dismount and move up as the other three squad leaders rally their troops.  1st Squad is good, but 2nd and 3rd Squads only manage to rally up to 'pinned.'

Lt Weider continues pushing his luck!  He orders his driver to inch out a bit more, and they take a shot at the remaining Matilda I...

The British tank (bottom left) is immobilized, but the crew stays in the vehicle, and Major Darby immediately dashes forward to rally them back into the fight!  They're settled down, and open fire on the German tank platoon!

Cpl Gruden's tank is knocked out.  The entire crew is killed except Cpl Gruden, who is badly burned and will miss the remainder of the campaign in Greece, while Cpl Neuer's tank is pinned by the explosion!

While on the far right, looking to capitalize on the immediate tactical situation, the tank commander of the British Cruiser orders his driver to charge, and they go in, guns blazing!!!

Sgt Eisen, veteran of Poland and France, rises and leads his squad forward, but they are mowed down and he is killed, so another long-service veteran, SSgt  Behrendt, leads his squad forward and they manage to knock out the British tank with Molotov cocktails and grenades.

But while the Cruiser has been knocked out (top right), the damn immobilized Matilda I (bottom center left) keeps banging away at the last German tank (center top)...

And Cpl Neuer's panzer brews up, lightly wounding him.

The Aussie Rifle Plt (bottom center) again fires on LCpl Groen's Infantry Gun crew (top left), pinning them.

The Allies get a CoC dice and Major Darby calls in arty on the German Motorcycle Platoon position, then orders the Matilda (center left) to engage Lt Weider's armored car (top center)...

The armored car is shot to pieces (far right) and the Lieutenant and his crew are forced to retreat on foot.

*Things are looking bleak for the Germans: they have lost all their mobile firepower (two armored cars and three tanks), two Platoon Commanders, and two of their four rifle squads.  They are seriously hampered in terms of Command Dice, and they are on the verge of breaking.  I am seriously considering having them fall back but the Allies really don't have anything left, either, and they're about to break, too.

The big problem at this point is that the Allies are on a run of getting three straight phases, and they are whooping up on the Germans.

The remaining Aussie 3" mortar team (bottom right) ranges in on the German ATG (top left)...

Coming up a little short (ATG at bottom right, 'splash' a bit to its right).

On the German left, 2nd and 3rd Squads move into the woods, as Cpl Klostermann leads his squad forward (right).

The Matilda spots them and opens fire...

But Klostermann and his men make it to the shelter of the burning Matilda.

The British artillery falls on the wood...

Pinning 1st Squad and suppressing 3rd Squad.

And the Matilda (bottom left) opens fire on SSgt Behrendt's 1st Squad (top right), keeping them pinned.

Sensing the threat to their last remaining tank (top center right), the Aussie Rifle Platoon breaks cover, moving right (bottom) go get into position to engage the German Motorcycle Platoon (top right).  They open fire, but don't manage to do anything to Cpl Klostermann's 4th Squad!

So the Aussie mortar team (bottom right) gets in on the act, doing everything they can to keep the German infantry off their tank (top center)...

But it fall right of the target (top right)!

The Germans called in arty on the Aussie Rifle Platoon's position in the woods...

But the Aussie Rifle Platoon just left the woods, so they largely escape.  They don't suffer any casualties, but they do get a rifle section and their 2" mortar team suppressed, while a second rifle section was pinned.

And then it's go time: SSgt Behrendt moves 1st Squad up to support (yellow bead at right), as Cpl Klostermann leads his men to close assault the British Matilda (top)!

In a hellish clash straight out of Dante's Inferno, the British tank is knocked out in close combat, which is enough to convince Major Darby and his command element to destroy their equipment and surrender!

The German motorcycle troops (bottom left) open fire on the Aussie diggers...

Sending them packing!  Most of the platoon escapes, but one rifle squad was suppressed and unable to escape, so they were forced to surrender (left top).

A pretty significant win for Captain Wehner's 1st Reconnaissance Battlegroup; the extraordinarily hard fighting in the vicinity of the F6 bridge took a tremendous toll on the Commonwealth's Lee Force/ Australian 2nd Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment, but then they were bottled in by the German Panzer Battlegroup, so the vast majority of them were forced to capitulate, and the few that escaped only managed to do so by abandoning their weapons, munitions, and equipment, thus eliminating them as an effective fighting force.  But all is not peachy on the German side, either; due to the heavy casualties inflicted first on Major Bohm's 2nd Recce and now on Lt Wehner's 1st Recce, the Germans have now reorganized, combining the two into "Battlegroup Bohm," shown as '1st Recon' on the campaign map.  So Lee Force/Aus 2/7 was eliminated and the German reconnaissance battlegroups sat tight in order to reorganize.

Man, that was a helluva fight, between two heavy hitters.  Neither side had a large force, and certainly not much in the way of infantry, but they both had lot of hitting power, and boy did they use it, literally knocking the hell out of each other!  As usual, the fight came down to one key moment where one side has to make a risky move, and if it works they win, if it doesn't they lose.  This time it was the Commonwealth force, where they had to push the Aussie Diggers out into the open in order to try to keep the German Motorcycle Platoon off of their last remaining tank; they moved, fired, and failed, which allowed the Matilda to be destroyed by swarming German infantry, and then they got roughed up a bit themselves when the Germans caught them in the open.  But we did have a first; several times we've seen German soldiers decorated for valor, but this fight saw the British produce a man worthy of decoration as well.  Sergeant R.E. Gulliver, commander of the Lee Force tank platoon, was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross for conspicuous gallery, specifically in that his tank knocked out three German panzers, one armored car, and then fought to the death in close combat after his disabled tank was assaulted by German infantry.

Casualties:

German losses: 35 casualties and 3 Panzer IIs, two armored cars, one 7.5cm infantry gun, and one 3.7cm anti-tank gun knocked out.  Both guns and one Panzer II were completely destroyed.

Commonwealth losses: 30 casualties, 15 captured, and two Matilda Is and one A10 Cruiser destroyed

Characters:

Sgt Eisen, veteran of Poland, France, and Greece, KIA
SSgt Gradl, veteran of Poland, France, and Greece, receives his 3rd Wound Badge as he is injured badly enough to require evacuation and will miss the remainder of the campaign in Greece
Cpl Gruden, veteran of France and Greece, was wounded and is out for the remainder of the campaign
Cpl Neuer was lightly wounded
Sgt Pichler received his 2nd Wound Badge when he was lightly wounded
Sgt Keck received his 2nd Wound Badge when he was lightly wounded

Awards:

2nd Lt Weider was awarded the Iron Cross 2nd Class for disabling two tanks, his second and third of the war.  I foresee a transfer to the panzers in his future.
SSgt Behrendt was awarded the Iron Cross 1st Class and Tank Killer Badge for saving the 2nd Motorcycle Platoon by knocking out a British tank
Cpl Klostermann was awarded the Iron Cross 2nd Class and Tank Killer Badge for knocking out a British tank that had single-handedly eliminated a platoon of panzers

Next up we witness Lt Loeb's Panzer battlegroup take on the 4th Hussars.

V/R,

Jack