Historical Background:
By October 1942, Stalingrad had become a matter of personal prestige for both Stalin and Hitler, and the sole focal point of the Campaign in the East, above and beyond any strategic military consideration. In mid-October, the Luftwaffe intensified its efforts against the remaining Red Army positions holding the west bank. Luftflotte 4 flew 2,000 sorties on 14 October and 600 tons of bombs were dropped by German Stukas. The same day, three infantry divisions and two Panzer divisions, supported by battalions of combat engineers, surrounded the three northern factories. Their attack was directed against the center of the Soviet line. The 14th Panzer pushed forward and broke through. With the Tractor Factory nearly surrounded, the intensity of the attack effectively split the Soviet 62nd Army in two. Knowing that the loss of the Tractor Factory would lead to the collapse of the Soviet’s right flank, General von Paulus ordered fresh troops forward to dislodge the last Soviet troops entrenched there. At the same time, the German forces in the center began to turn south toward the Red Barricades…
The stage is set, the battle lines are drawn, and you are in command. The rest is history.
Briefing:
Axis Player
[Germany]
Take 10 Command cards.
You move first.
Allied Player
[Soviet Union]
Take 9 Command cards.
Conditions of Victory:
18 Medals.
The 5 road hexes exiting the Axis player’s baseline are Permanent Medal Objectives for the Allied forces. The Allied player gains the Medal when he occupies the hex at the start of his turn.
The 5 road hexes on the Allied player’s baseline are Permanent Medal Objectives for the Axis forces. The Axis player gains the Medal when he occupies the hex at the start of his turn.
The 9 factory hexes of the Dzerzhinskiy Tractor Factory form a Temporary Majority Medal Objective worth 2 Medals for whoever controls the majority of its hexes.
The 7 factory hexes of the Red Barricades Factory form a Temporary Majority Medal Objective worth 2 Medals for whoever controls the majority of its hexes.
Special Rules:
Combat rules are in effect.
Blitz Rules are in effect (Actions 15 - Blitz Rules). In addition, the Allies, like the Axis, roll only 1d per hex when playing an Air Power Command card.
Russian Overlord Command rules are in effect for the Allied player (Nations 2bis Overlord - Red Army).
Place a badge on the 5 German elite Infantry units (Troops 2 - Specialized Units).
Place a badge on the 5 German engineer units (Troops 4 - Combat Engineers).
A unit that starts its move on a Road (Terrain 42 - Roads) and stays on it may NOT move 1 additional hex, because of craters and rubles.
The gullies running through the left and right flanks’ corners are Balkas (Terrain 65 - Balkas).
The Northern Factories had received extensive damage from the Luftwaffe prior to the advance of German ground forces. Play them like the hexes used to represent them however (i.e. Barracks & Factory hexes play like a Town), rather than as City ruins; in Overlord play, this conforms remarkably well to the difficulties of urban combat both armies experienced.
Many city landmarks are protected by sandbags. Use Hedgehogs as stand-in pieces, if necessary.
Air Rules are not in effect. The Air Sortie cards are set aside and are not used in this mission.
Scenario link
Setup Photo:
We played a two-player game where I took the Axis side and my opponent took the Allies side. The battle began with the Axis having some great dice rolls, quickly scoring 5 medals. However, the Allies then counterattacked in the center with their armor, catching the Axis by surprise and scoring 3 medals. But the Axis fought back, and after heavy casualties on both sides, they managed to destroy all the Allied armor and infantry units.
At the same time, the Axis couldn’t capture the Red Barricades Factory, as they were pushed back by the Allies’ lucky dice rolls. On the left flank, the Axis cleared the Tractor Factory but didn’t occupy it, focusing instead on the Russian guns. After eliminating the guns, they didn’t have enough units left to secure the Tractor Factory. Since the Axis couldn’t take the Tractor Factory, they took the left-flank permanent medal objective and started moving toward the other medals.
In the center, the Axis attempted to advance with their last armor unit toward the medals, but that unit was destroyed by the Allies, thanks to some lucky dice rolls. By this point, the score was 17-14, and the game was still quite balanced. The Allies then left the Red Barricades to counterattack on the Axis left flank, losing two medals in the process. The Axis pushed with one armor unit, trying to score the winning medal, but only managed to reduce one Allied armor unit to 1 figure.
Then the Allies brought reinforcements on the left flank (one armor unit) with a combat card and pushed back the Axis armor unit trying to capture a medal. But in the next turn, the Axis had an incredible lucky dice roll, destroying the reinforcing Allied armor unit and securing the win with a final score of 17-12.
End Photo:
For the second game, we switched sides and started the battle. The Axis began with two infantry assaults, one in the center and one on their left, bringing reinforcements and a sniper onto the board, but they didn’t manage to eliminate any Allied units. The Allies responded by playing cards across all sections and preparing their armor for a counterattack in the center.
The Allies’ armored counterattack took the Germans by surprise, and since the Axis had no cards in that section, the Allies scored 5 medals, including an objective. The Axis then launched a general attack across all sections but only managed to score one medal and didn’t make much progress.
On the next turn, the Allies eliminated 3 weak Axis units on their left and retook the Red Barricades and Tractor Factories, securing the victory with a score of 18-6.
End Photo: (I forgot to take the photo and I remembered to take it after I removed the figures on the axis’ medal track)
Allies counterattack:
Fierce fight for Red Barricades Factory:
Conclusion: A more urban scenario than Sword Of Stalingrad. The Axis definitely needs to be cautious about the Allies’ potential counterattack, especially in the center. It’s important to have armor units ready to respond quickly, as the Allies can easily capitalize on an unprepared Axis position. Keeping a few cards in hand for defensive measures could also help, especially if the Allies try to push hard in the center.
On the other hand, the Allies should focus on positioning their armor in a way that they can quickly hit the Axis when they least expect it. Using cards in all sections to set up a surprise strike while also holding strong in key positions can really catch the Axis off guard.
If you’ve played this scenario, how did you feel about the balance between offense and defense for each side? Do you think focusing on one side of the battlefield more than the other gives an advantage?