This week, we gathered once again around our screens to finish off our Rapid Fire game from last Monday.
The Germans had made noticeable gains on the right flank and the loss of one of the Shermans meant the Americans were extremely nervous. As the Panther trundled down the slope to support the flank, the infantry readied their grenades and prepared to rush the Armored Car, which was cowering behind the hedge.
Heavy damage from the Panther immobilised the vehicle long enough for the Germans to stroll up and pop in a grenade. Although this meant that the flank was now clear and attention could be focused on the center, the Panther had presented the Americans with a juicy rear end shot.
American mortar shells screamed down onto the road, catching a couple of unfortunates before the rest of the Infantry were ordered to lie down and effectively disappeared from view!
It was a now or never moment for the Sherman, which pulled out from behind the building, poked it's 76mm barrel through the hedge and fired.
It missed!
The horrified crew watched in terror as the Panther swiveled round to punish the American audacity. It had already proved it's deadly efficiency with an amazingly accurate shot last week, and it seemed the inevitable awaited.
As the focus of the battle had now switched to the right, the M36 started to make a dash between the half tracks to hopefully have a crack at the Panther.
A fierce debate broke out over whether German mortars would inflict damage on the crew of the M36, as shrapnel pattered over its armor. The remaining GIs running up to the farmhouse were so intimidated by the proximity of the Panther, that they failed to reach the safety of the ruins and ended up in an embarrassing heap.
The Panther fired, causing heavy damage and it was assumed by everyone that it was only going to be a matter of time before the Germans forced an American withdrawal. The only hope seemed to be that the Germans had forgotten about the remaining bazooka and there might be a chance for a lucky shot.
The German infantry continued to lie flat, out of sight of the American spotter. They were content to watch the Panther wreak havoc, intending to come up and clear the farmhouse of the mangled remains of GIs.
Surely it was a matter of formality, surely it would be a simple shot. The German players were already looking at the fire table to calculate the most efficient way of cutting down the GIs before the M36 could intervene.
The miss was a delicious piece of Teutonic hubris! The amazed Sherman reversed back around the corner out of sight with the crew having a story to tell their children.
The M36 parked up behind the ruined farmhouse and the American infantry finally made it into cover.
As is often the case in armor duels with Rapid Fire, the tactical considerations are demanding. The Americans could just sit tight and hope the Panther made a mistake in positioning itself for a shot, or they could try and seize the initiative and offset the movement penalty by closing and shooting from an obscured position in case the Panther survived.
It hadn't worked well for the Sherman and although the M36 had a better class gun, it would probably only get one chance. The flimsy shed offered no protection from armor piercing shells but at least it did mean partial obscurity. Fortune favours the brave apparently, so the M36 bravely stopped by the shed and slammed a shell into the Panther.
The shot caused heavy damage, which meant that the Panther had to sit there getting a taste of it's own medicine whilst the M36 closed in to finish it off.
The German mortars dropped smoke in front of the M36 in a desperate attempt to buy time but the M36 drove through it to close range. Emboldened by their success, the Sherman also came back round the corner and lined up for another shot.
The Sherman fired first and missed-ramping up the dramatic tension and giving the Germans hope. Hope that was cruelly dashed as the M36 knocked out the Panther to the sound of cheers from the GIs.
The Germans were forced to withdraw and the Americans had managed to hold onto the crossroads and beat off the counter attack.
The post battle discussion centered around the German decision to split their armor. Having only the Panzer on the left flank meant that the Americans were able to consolidate their forces and face the Panther. The US Armored Car performed heroically stopping the German Infantry from sweeping up to the crossroads and supporting the tanks. By the time it was knocked out, the infantry were battered and in no shape to storm the ruined farmhouse.
We made a decision to apply negative modifiers to both shooter and target if they had moved, which made careful planning all the more essential. It could have resulted in a stand and shoot situation but the Panther's decision to come forward to support the infantry was critical.
We've learned an awful lot from running these games. The larger scale makes it much easier to see what is going on. A skirmish game provides challenges and frustrations for the players when line of sight becomes critical and it's difficult to judge whether you're safe or caught in the open. This game seemed to be a balance between a small action with a few forces and the larger scope we need to be able to play effectively. We've played several games of large scale units which are easier to control and manage your forces once you remember which unit is which ( flags are a great help here!)
Massive thanks to our game host who patiently moved our forces, worked out lines of sight, positioned cameras at key moments and made the whole thing possible.
