8 Para Brigade of the 6th Airborne Division have established a defensive bridgehead in the Bois de Bavant. The 21st Panzer Division ran into an ambush at the edge of the forest in the last game, and have returned with a larger force to try to remove the paratrooper blocking force. They could bypass them, but that would leave an enemy of unknown strength operating in their rear, potentially disrupting lines of communication.
Ciarán and I played a 500pt game of Battlegroup with forces chosen from the Overlord ‘D-Day’ book.
The Armies
The British force consisted of:
- FHQ
- Airborne Infantry Platoon
- 2x HMGs
- AT Gun
- Medium Mortar
- Sherman Troop
- Sniper
- Foxholes
The foxholes were a key aspect of their defence.
The German force had:
- FHQ
- Panzer Grenadier Platoon, dismounted
- HMG
- AT Gun
- Medium Mortar
- 4 x Panzerfausts
- Panzer IV Platoon
- Mounted Panzer Grenadier Patrol
- FO
- Off-Table Mortar Fire
- Sniper
The Game
This was a really fun game. Ciarán commanded the British and mounted an active defence, keeping one part of his force in their foxholes and aggressively moving across fields to hit the flank of the approaching Germans. This worked very well, as the German force never fully cleared out the dug in troops, despite hitting them hard. In the more open combat on the German flank, the quality of the paratroopers proved a deciding factor. Also, the PIAT was possibly Ciarán’s MVP, taking out two Panzer IVs!
That was a really fun game. I’d originally planned to play it solo, but Ciarán fancied a go. He played very well and is eager to play more games of Battlegroup.
Until next time,
Owen