Anyhow, we decided to Free For All since it got everything on the board and required the least thought.
FRENCH ESCADRON DE COMBAT
HQ (1x Somua S35)
Medium Tank Platoon (4x Somua S35)
Medium Tank Platoon (4x Somua S35)
FRENCH COMPAGNIE DE COMBAT
HQ (1x H39 Long)
Light Tank Platoon (3x Hotchkiss H39 long)
Light Tank Platoon (3x Hotchkiss H39 long)
Medium Tank Platoon (4x Somua S35)
Recon (5x Panhard AMD-35)
GERMAN LEICTHE PIONEERKOMPANIE
HQ
Full Pioneer Platoon
Full Pioneer Platoon
Full Pioneer Platoon
10.5cm Battery
*Kamfgrupped 1 squad from ea Pio platoon to form a 4th pio platoon)
GERMAN CZECH PANZERKOMPANIE
HQ (2x 38(t))
Panzer II Platoon (3x Panzer II C Early)
Czech Panzer Platoon (4x Panzer 38(t))
Czech Panzer Platoon (3x Panzer 38(t))
The objectives have been placed and we have deployed. Objectives on the french side are clearly visible. German objectives are on the hill on the top right, and behind the wheat field in the center.
Somuas idle, ready to move out.
A mass of Pioneers, artillery, and German tanks.
Panzer IIs and 38(t)s take up the German right flank.
Panhards look out for the enemy.
The French rumble forward!
Hotchkiss H39s move towards the small village.
The other H39 platoon moves up to secure the ford.
Pioneers dig in on the high ground.
Somuas move into the village.
Somuas move up to the wall the Panhards recced. The Panhards withdraw to the wheat field.
10.5cm Artillery rains on the French, but does no damage.
38(t)s move up and take long range shots on the Somuas.
Pioneers rush forward to put pressure on the French.
8 somuas open up on the 10.5cm Battery.
More Somuas firing on the artillery. One gun is knocked out.
The Panhards move into the town.
And draw the ire of the artillery! One Panhard is bailed.
H39s open fire with their MGs on the Pioneers. The Panhards hold fire.
Somuas discourage the Germans from taking the woods on the French left.
More German Pioneers move forward to secure the ford.
38(t)s engage in a long range duel with H39s and underestimate the French armor. One 38(t) burns!
The Panhards reposition to the right to support the H39s in the long range duel.
Somuas line up shots on the 38(t)s. To the right of the village, Somuas continue to open fire on the 10.5cm battery, eventually knocking out all 4 guns.
The H39s knock out another 38(t) at long range! The Company Commander and Panhards move up to assist.
Once the 10.5cm Artillery is neutralized (the HQ and staff team do stick around- so they aren't destroyed yet!), the Somuas and H39s blaze away on the pioneers.
Panzers burn in the distance.
Two Panzers on the hill burn, and a third is bailed out.
The German right flank is being overrun!
French Commanders' view.
Panzer IIs tried to get sneaky and flank a Somua, but immediately regret the decision! Have I yet mentioned how hot Jaime's dice were?
German pioneers push far into the French territory!
The two remaining 38(t)s realize they can't win the shootout and pull back.
French armor surrounds the encroaching pioneers.
Somuas and H39s push through the village with objectives in sight.
H39s move into the wheat.
Panzer IIs are picked apart by the Somuas.
On the right Pioneers flee in the face of insane amounts of MG fire.
The Company Commander stopped the Panzer IIs cold.
On the right, the French have won the armor shootout and routed the pioneers.
Somuas trap the 38(t)s on the French left flank in a clearing in the woods.
On the right, the Panzer 38(t)s get ballsy and rush forward scoring their first kill. A Panhard AMD goes up in smoke! The remaining Panhards are feeling confident and do not breakoff.
H39s push across the ford. The French are in full pursuit now!
H39s backed up by Somuas race forward with MGs blazing. The H39s assault and knock out the first line of the defending Pioneers. The others are too far back and the assault ends.
The Panhards again utilize the road to redeploy, reinforcing the push up the center.
The Somuas make a final push into the trapped 38(t)s hidey hole.
The German objective is barely contested.
The 38(t)s open up on the H39s but do no damage. Then they fail their stormtroopers move.
Another Pioneer platoon rushes forward and assaults the H39s, knocking one out! The other 2 immediately breakoff. The pioneers consolidate forward, but can't quite breakthrough on the Somuas.
The 38(t)s flank the Somuas, and stormtrooper into the woods!
Somuas, H39s, and Panhards fill the pioneers with MG rounds.
H39s and Somuas assault. One platoon breaks, and the other falls back.
The Germans desperately send the Artillery battery commander forward to contest!
The Somuas do little damage in return fire! The 38(t)s in turn brew up one Somua.
The French hold the objective solidly. MGs keep the pioneers at bay, and the German company commander is knocked out.
On the other flank the 38(t)s including the company commander go up in smoke.
At this point the Germans have lost their armored company, and their pioneers are battered. Tom and Joe decide to call it.
CLOSING THOUGHTS: Holy moly, I didn't expect the French to perform so admirably! The one-man turret definitely sucks- the trick is to just move up en masse, and put yourself in good positions so that if the enemy moves they will only get ROF 1 to your full ROF. Whew, I think we were all stunned at just how effective those Somuas really were.
