Kampfgruppe Pieper vs Hell's Highway British in Free For All

The old man draws a bead on his opposite and sends him to his maker! This was the second game of the OMG Doubles tournament. It was 1000 pts a player and the mission was free for all. We played against a Hell's Highway British list played by Stefan and Serge. They were rocking two 8 gun batteries of 25 pdrs with infantry supported by tanks, time for the pie plate of doom!

Kampfgruppe Pieper Big Willie's HQ Panther 3 x Panthers Full Grenadier platoon 3 x Pumas Matt Varnish's HQ - King Tiger 2 x King Tigers Me 262 support

Hell's Highway British Double SS's HQ and 2IC Infantry platoon Infantry platoon 2 x 6 pdrs 3 x AA guns 8 gun 25 pdr 8 gun 25 pdr HQ, 2IC Sherman and ARV 2 x Shermans, 2 x Firefly 2 x Shermans, 2 x Firefly Col JOE Vandeleur with RAF FAC

SETUP AND DEPLOYMENT

Dawn breaks revealing Germans ready to advance on the British

British guns dug in ready for the German advance

More guns dug in with the suppport of the tanks

British tanks in the wheat field surrounded by guns

King Tigers ready to advance in the early morning light

The OC and Pumas guarding the road

Panther's and Infatry in the wheat field

UNITS IN RESERVE
Kampfgruppe Pieper Nil	Hell's Highway British Nil

DEPLOYMENT SUMMARY

Kampfgruppe Pieper: The King Tigers lined up opposite of the Shermans with the intent of breaking the armour company. We deployed the Panthers and Infantry on the right to stop the tanks if they tried to flank the King Tigers. Hell's Highway British: There were guns all over the place and unfortenately there was nothing but open ground for about 20 inches, so the Germans were going to have a hard time asaulting. But the big guns and thick armour of the big cats were going to be a problem.

TURN 1

Panthers advance to the front of the fileds

Despite the range the King Tigers and OC destroy a Sherman and bail another

The 25 pdrs lay down a smoke screen on the Panthers..

And the King Tigers

Shermans attempt to disengage from the firefight with the King Tigers

COMBAT CASUALTY SUMMARY
Kampfgruppe Pieper	Hell's Highway British 1 x Sherman

TURN 1 SUMMARY

Kampfgruppe Pieper: The opening shots from the King Tigers and OC were way more effective than Matt and I thought given that we needed 6's to hit. The remainder of the turn went basically how we thought it would with lots of smoke. Hell's Highway British: The big guns are already causing problems with their range and thick armour. The 25 pdrs works defensively so that next turn the number of incoming shots will be limited.

TURN 2

Panther's move to the edge of the smoke and take pots shots with no luck

King Tigers open fire again, this time knocking out two Fireflies

COMBAT CASUALTY SUMMARY
Kampfgruppe Pieper	Hell's Highway British 1 x Sherman, 2 x Firefly

TURN 2 SUMMARY

Kampfgruppe Pieper: Our turn was pretty fast with the majority being long range tank shots. The King Tigers were on the mark causing massive problems for the Shermans. Hell's Highway British: The 25 pdrs were the only weapon really able to reach out and touch the big cats but the top armour was holding, for now...

TURN 3

One of the big cats is bailed while the others continue to lurk in the field

King Tigers advance to the river hemming in the Shermans

COMBAT CASUALTY SUMMARY
Kampfgruppe Pieper	Hell's Highway British 1 x Sherman, 2 x Firefly

TURN 3 SUMMARY

Kampfgruppe Pieper: Our turn was pretty fast with the minimal targets for the big guns. We continue to move to try and get shots on the Shermans. Hell's Highway British: Stupid big cats!! No terrain to advance behind and the Firefly's need flank shots to have a chance of taking them out.

TURN 4

Panther's draw a line on the other Sherman platoon and take out a Firefly

The OC of the Panther's and King Tiger take out the OC of the tank squadron

COMBAT CASUALTY SUMMARY
Kampfgruppe Pieper	Hell's Highway British 1 x Sherman, 2 x Firefly 1 x Firefly OC Sherman

TURN 4 SUMMARY

Kampfgruppe Pieper: Slowly we are taking out the Shermans from range, but we need to be careful about running out of time. Hell's Highway British: It seems like we are fighting a delaying battle but the mission is suppose to be a free for all.

TURN 5

Panther's and Half tracks begin moving forward

King Tigers rolling across the bridge as the sun rises further in the sky

Shermans move out in a last ditch attempt to get flank shots on the big cats, losing 2 for their troubles

COMBAT CASUALTY SUMMARY
Kampfgruppe Pieper	Hell's Highway British Sherman platoon 1 x Sherman, 2 x Firefly OC Sherman 3 x 25 pdrs

TURN 5 SUMMARY

Kampfgruppe Pieper: We broke one platoon finally but still need to take the other one out to break the company. We are getting close and it looks like we will have enough time. Hell's Highway British: The Panther fire is starting to whittle down the 25 pdrs, making the artillery barrages less effective.

TURN 6

A single Puma burns as the remainder of Pieper's group heads for the bridge

COMBAT CASUALTY SUMMARY
Kampfgruppe Pieper 1 x Puma	Hell's Highway British Sherman platoon Sherman platoon OC Sherman 6 x 25 pdrs

TURN 6 SUMMARY

Kampfgruppe Pieper: We are finally able to kill the remaining Sherman breaking the Company and ending the game. They were trying to move through buildings with the tanks and that's never a good thing. Hell's Highway British: To many big cats and a board that let them stand back and hammer us. Next time we'll get them.

This was a perfect example of some times when your playing a game the mission and terrain can be against you from the start. With a river running across the boad it made it very hard for the double S's to get flank shots on the big cats. In the end Matt Varnish and I chalked up another 6-1 and were heading into the last game with a perfect score.

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