"Team Whiskey - Fulda Gap Batrep 3 Part I" Topic

All,

I've got a lot going on in real life, so I'm trying something I've never done before: I'm releasing a batrep in 'installments.' So please bear with me, this isn't permanent, but I hope it tides you over while I work on the rest.

It's 0930 on 3 August 1986, and the Soviet 8th Guards Army is taking an operational pause, i.e., going over to the defensive temporarily, due to heavy casualties laid on by 11th ACR and 3rd Armored Division. Of course, NATO forces are fairly beaten up as well, and air superiority, upon which so much of NATO's operational plans are dependent (to have close air support and middle-interdiction to off-set the Soviet advantage in men and material). V Corps decides to take a gamble in its sector to help get its air support back on track.

The Soviets, largely due to the traffic jam ensuing in the wake of an unplanned operational pause (and which they are working on clearing up), have wound up with considerable air defense assets pushed far forward in Team Whiskey's sector. And so V Corps has ordered Team Whiskey to conduct a local counterattack on 8th Guards Army forces, with the primary mission to identify and destroy Soviet air defense assets in the objective area, and the secondary mission being simply to punch Soviet armored elements in the mouth to help keep them off-balance.

The opposing forces, with US on the right and Soviets on the left. Being a counterattack, this is that rare game where the US outnumbers the Soviets. The US has two companies of Mechanized Infantry (in Bradleys), a tank platoon (M1s), four command stands in an M-577 and M-113s, a mortar platoon of 4 x 81mm tubes, two 10th SFG teams, and an AH-64 Apache. The Soviets have a reinforced tank platoon, eight rifle teams, four machine gun teams, four ATGMs (Spandrels), four 120mm mortars, four MANPAD SAMs, and four SA-9 Gaskin vehicle SAMs. The Soviet infantry begins the game dug-in.

The table, with north being up, the US baseline at left (west), and the Soviet baseline at right (east). You can see the Team Whiskey Mech Inf companies spread out at left, while the Soviets are spread across the board on the right. The US SF teams are in the forest at top center left.

The US force is getting beat up, but punches back. To see the whole thing, please check:
link

More to come.

V/R,
Jack

Awesome mate!

Take your time :) Quality is better than quantity in producing these cracking reports.

Fantastic work!

Great battle report! Take your time as these are amazing to read. Life for that Bradley company is pretty much how I would expect it to be… Life span measured in minutes on the modern battlefield dominated by ATGM's and kinetic penetrator rods.

As for that one mortar strike, talk about a full house hitting pay dirt!!!

Thanks fellas, I really appreciate the kind words and support.

I don't really like the idea of piece-mealing the batrep, but people are bothering me to put something up ;) I'll try to get part 2 up tonight, but no promises.

And yeah, that Soviet ATGMs and mortar barrage really sucked (from my point of view as the US player)…

V/R,
Jack

Lt Col Lacy? Cool… ben

Yeah man, the Battalion Commander doesn't get into too many games, but I thought this one was appropriate ;)

Sorry for 'victimizing' you, but that's what happens to guys that post responses to my posts. I.e., it would've happened even if I wasn't testing your book, though if it wasn't your book you'd probably be a 1st or 2nd Lt ;)

With casualties going the way they are, the posts above yours are going to probably be recruited as well, though there's already a Lt "Sighe".

V/R,
Jack

You put me as one of the Red tank commanders right? :-)

Negative, you will suffer as a US Tank Platoon Commander.

You're not selling rules like a Commie, so I'm not recognizing you as one ;)

V/R,
Jack

Jack,
Where did you get those pieces of "field" terrain? Thanks.

Coopman,

Those are from Hotzmats.

V/R,
Jack

Ouch. WW3 is playing out about like I expected it would have, bloody on both sides!

Yeah man, it's rough all over ;)

V/R,
Jack

The shame!

At least make me Army then ;)

Excellent!