All,
We've got a snow day here in Dallas, so I'm able to post this a bit early.
It's 1000, 19 Sept 1939, and, having discovered the positions opposite them abandoned, KG Klink has moved north across the river to begin the grim process of reducing the Kutno pocket. The Poles are beat and they know it; they fought bravely to break through the German trap, but their men are exhausted and their equipment expended, and they are further disheartened as news of the Soviet betrayal (the Soviet invasion of Poland on 17 Sept 1939) has just reached them. The Poles are surrendering in droves, though some pockets of resistance remain.
One such pocket is at the village of Krowice (fictional), where KG Klink reconnaissance discovered dug-in enemy troops at approximately 0800 this morning. They promptly pulled back to higher ground to observe as the Poles were given a healthy dose of air and artillery, and no sooner had the last Stuka pulled out of its dive then elements of KG Klink were streaming forward to break the Polish position, looking to hit the Poles before they'd fully recovered from the supporting fires. It worked.
The opposing forces:
The Germans, with a star studded roster of no less than four holders of the Iron Cross 2nd Class: led by the Schutzen Company Comander, 1st Lt Freitag (Iron Cross), all of his 3rd Grenadier Platoon (led by 2nd Lt Tausch, Sgt Schlessinger's 1st Squad, Cpl Nader's 2nd Squad, Cpl Hauer – Iron Cross – 3rd Squad, and Cpl Kamphaus' 4th Squad), three squads from 4th Grenadier Platoon (acting platoon commander Sgt Mader – Iron Cross – with the HQ section, Cpl Kandler's 1st Squad, and Cpl Imhofe -Iron Cross – 3rd Squad), supported by two tanks of 2nd Panzer Platoon (acting Platoon Commander Sgt Grossman's Pz Mk III and LCpl Otjen's Pz Mk II) and Cpl Osswald's 80mm mortar.
The Poles, with their CO, a Maxim .30-cal MG, a 37mm anti-tank gun, a 76mm field gun, and eight rifle squads, are dug-in but demoralized.
Overview, north is up, with Germans coming from the south and Poles dug-in in the north. Lt Freitag, the CO, is with Lt Tausch's 3rd Platoon in the center, 4th Platoon is moving up on the far right, and the two Panzers are at bottom left, having been late to the line of departure. The Poles are dug-in, but have been pounded for several hours, and the Germans are looking to close the distance rapidly to take advantage of the Poles shell-shocked state (note: I didn't do anything to penalize the Poles in the game, this is just narrative that fits after the fact of what happened on the tabletop, if that makes sense).
The Germans are a bit too concerned with the enemy anti-tank gun and miss the Polish infantry squads stealing close.
Someone's hunting an Iron Cross: a single German squad assaults the hill, dispatching the enemy machine gun (off camera to right) in close combat, dispatching the enemy field gun (center) in close combat, then withstanding counterattacks by three enemy rifle squads (one off camera) led by their commanding officer.
For the whole report, check the blog at:
link
It was one hell of a final performance. Actually I had planned two more fights for the Polish campaign, but I've got a bunch of other stuff I need to get to (not least of which is 5Core Brigade Commander play-testing, for which I've been amassing 6mm forces. I finished up painting 320 6mm infantry this weekend, only to realize I'm short. Now I'm waiting on more infantry and more bases…), so I was already looking for the door, and when this fight went off the way it did I thought, "what a perfect way to wrap up the campaign." I hope you had as much fun as I did.
I'm busy painting, basing, and re-basing (dammit!), but stay tuned as more games are soon to follow.
V/R,
Jack
