Sudden Death
(A108)
(c) 1997, Wayward Publications
[Brief AAR] [Map]
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This was one of the closest games in the Annual thus far. A small game, really using only half a board, and with a handful of units. Expect to play this in one evening. You can surmise the situation easily at first glance: an elite attacking force going up against a well entrenched but brittle defense. I think it favors the French slightly and only because of the time they have. Eight turns is a long time in this game and the French have the luxury to sit back for a moment and take advantage of their force. They can sit back and pound the Germans for an extra fire phase or two or try an assault. With the higher morale and limited return fire, see which units break. If too many do so, fall back and regroup.
The defending Germans have the toughest decisions with the placement of their fortifications. Remember, neither the pillbox nor the entrenchment need be revealed before the French set up, provided they are in concealment terrain. It might be worth your while to do so. It does not make for the best setup but at least the French will not know where the pillbox is before his placement. In a game designed to kill time, make the French have to move as much as possible to get to you.
Fortifications require a word of caution. I think foxholes are more deadly to the defender than the attacker, simply because they cannot move out of them easily. They can rout without be Interdicted and you might have to voluntarily rout to do so. If the French have a killer stack, and the wise player would, a unit moving out of a foxhole in the open presents a juicy -2 target. The same holds true for trenches as well.
Trenches have an advantage in that a moving unit may proceed directly to a connected hex without having to enter an intermediary location as foxholes require. This allows liberty in moving especially if entering or leaving the pill box. I also considered using a trench to move away from the front, allowing troops to rally easier. However, I opted instead to place it on the front, exposing the attacker to potentially more fire. Funny thing, but I will get back to that later.
In either case of the trench or foxhole, the logical temptation might be in concealment terrain, but the layout of the map may not invite that. The double crests above the stream and vantage point gained by being in the open lure some players to have entrenchments there. There is certainly a good case to be made for that. Perhaps equally alluring but less obvious is to hold back, let the French cross the open and terrain and blast them as they come over the crest lines. Again, tempting but the drawback is limited reaction time. If the shots miss or the French pull only one well timed MC, they are in. With the firepower, Hand to Hand option and higher morale, the French should not be afraid of closing.
The pillbox is of course what we are all interested in. We think a pillbox is invulnerable and tend to put too reliance on it. Fortunately, for the German, it is true in this case. With the +3 and the additional LV hindrance, the French are firing at a +4 target, +2 with their best leadership. Considering the other targets the French should be firing at, I doubt he will waste much time silencing the location - not until he is adjacent, that is. Since the pillbox can not cover the entire front or every approach, the next best placement is one that limits the attack. His force is small enough that it will not split it, but rather he has to choose which side from which to attack. Once committed it will be unlikely he will change attack routes. I like a position firing on the road. That is the most likely attack route, one that the French have to go through. As a result, the other forces are required to protect the flanks. See my map for the set up. One mistake, and I think it is a logical one, I would correct is to place the Hero in the pillbox with a 'good' squad and MMG. The leader is much more needed outside rallying units. Do not expect the French to stay in the covered arc too long. That means the units inside the pillbox may be needed outside that location at one point; the Germans need all their units firing all the times. Prepare a route for them to exit. My troops got mauled getting out and it lost of the game for me. If nothing else, voluntarily rout. Have your leader nearby.
As for the strategy of the defense, do not rely on your troops lingering in combat. With a poor seven morale and conscripts, they are going to break and do so quickly. Make sure of three things. First, plan rout paths. The rugged terrain hurts you as much as it does the French and do not expect troops routing uphill through woods to get anywhere fast. Two, have leaders nearby. Two leaders are pushing expectations but they need rallying or moving units more than directing fire. Lastly, expect conscripts to Demoralize on the first shot. With an ELR of 2 and base morale of 6 to begin with, they will surrender on a nine one the first MC at best. It is a very logical impulse to place these on the fringe of the attack. You can lose the game on that alone. But again, more on that later. For safety reasons, put them as close to the center of the defense as possible.
I think a dispersed defense line is called for. The Germans have that wonderful stream to hide behind. More importantly, there is a fairly open expanse to either end. Take advantage of that. Fall back if possible afterwards. I just cannot see letting the French cross either obstacle freely, something that would happen in a tighter, huddle defense. Whatever you do, do not sacrifice units. The Germans are looking at interior lines for defense, so use them. As such, they must be able to defend each other. If a unit is placed on the other side of the stream, it will never get back. In fact, it very well could face surrender. After the French have committed themselves, then start moving units in better locations.
The victory conditions are funny, so take more than a minute to understand them. It looks like a game of sudden death as the name implies, but there's less to it. The first side that scores five victory points more than the other wins automatically. Otherwise, the side with the most at the end of the game wins. To encourage the French to attack, the Pillbox is worth is 2 VPs for its owner, which initially is the Germans. What this really means is that if the French ever get three or more VPs ahead, they win. At that point, they withdraw, conceding the two VPs for the pillbox to the Germans. The result is that French win by a single point. On top of that, remember that a captured demoralized conscript squad is worth four VPs. If the Germans are careless enough to leave one of these in laying around, they can lose literally on the first shot of the game. While some see this interpretation as being sleazy or taking advantage of the rules, it is a consideration for which the Germans must account in their defense.
The map below briefly describes the German setup. The red squares are foxholes, the circles are trenches, the pillbox is marked somewhere under a circle.
I hated putting a 4-3-6 so far to the right but I took the chance (and won) that he thought it was a dummy; I even captured a DC. The leader was supposed to run him back quickly to the fight. The 4-4-7/LMG, near him, was a support position and could fire on several locations. The game went in the German favor for a long time. The first unit to break was the 4-4-7/MMG on the extreme left. I FPF'd the 4-3-6 in front of him. That unit broke and inflicted no damage on the French unit. Still the line was holding.
Finally, a 4-3-6 on the hill broke and with the 7-0 out of place, I made a fateful decision. With the French killer stack out of the pillbox's CA and not targets to fire at, I decided those units were better served out of the pillbox and into the battle. Besides, they did an admirable job in the first half of the game, breaking nearly everything they fire at. I assault moved the pillbox's occupants out. The subsequent French fire was murder. Rolling a low three, did not help, retaining ROF. In the end, the 9-1 was reduced and the 4-4-7double broke. This lead to more trouble. I panicked and took the 4-4-7/LMG on the right out of the foxhole, thinking I needed him more on the left, exposing it to an 4 -1; he broke too and would keep him out of the game. The line was crumbling fast. By the time French units actually made it across the stream, there were no defenders left in good order. He finally demoralized a 4-3-6 and the game was all but over. Moving adjacent to it, he merely captured the unit, vaulting him into the five point spread, he needed.
As always, I encourage discussion. If you agree or disagree, feel free to write me.