Yeoman Recon
Played 25/11/2007
Date:
26 June 1944, 13:45 hours
Location: Just
south of Cheux, Normandy.
History: As
dawn broke on 26 June, thousands of soldiers from the British VIII
Corps were moving to the attack. In the vanguard of the advance was the
15th Scottish Division steadfastly pushing forward to secure the
central road artery of Cheux. By noon, British infantry had secured the
main road through Cheux, though by this time the road was covered in
rubble and the town filled with German snipers and small pockets of
resistance.
Just before 1300, General O'Connor (commander VIII Corps) ordered
General 'Pip" Roberts' 11th Armoured Division to move
south through Cheux. Specifically, the order commanded
Roberts to dispatch his Reconnaissance
Regiment, the 2nd Northamptonshire
Yeomanry to race south in hopes of capturing the bridges over the Odon
River. The 12th SS Panzer Division was spread thin defending a large
portion of the EPSOM front and would be severely strained to hold the
ground.
Just south of Cheux, holding the line, were elements of HJ's
reconnaissance battalion and Major Siegfried Muller's 12th SS Pioneer
Battalion.
German Orders:
Destroy three British armoured vehicles.
German Decisive
Victory:
Prevent British Victory Condiitons and destroy four armoured vehicles.
British Orders:
Spot three of four types of German units or exit four armoured
vehicles off the south board edge.
British Decisive
Victory:
Spot 3 of 4 types of German Unit and not lose more than one armojured
vehicle.
German Players:
Mark and Graham
British Players: Andy and Simon
A summary account of the battle, with rolling presentation, is available on the slideshow link immediately below.
Notes
The first battle of the new campaign. The British players rightly
decided that spotting the German units would not lead to victory as the
mortar was off board and the AT gun had not been made available to the
Germans. Mark set out a good organised defence and tried to
stem the flood of British vehicles. He was outdone by the British entry
to the East of the board, which enabled a couple of vehicles to speed
south only to face one armoured car, which conceived to miss them.
A fun quick game, which reminded us of the Disposable Heroes rules, now in their second edition, and got us all together again. A British victory, however they suffered more casualties due ot the withering fire which greeted them as they tried to push South.
Victory Points
British KIA = 12 (2 immobilised vehicles)
German KIA = 4
British VPs = 9 (Scenario victors - 4 attachment credits)
German VPs = 12