Hauts-Vents
Played 14/11/2004
Date: 10 July 1944, 0630 hours
Location:
Slightly north of Hauts Vents, Normandy.
History:
Northwest of St.Lo the 30th Infantry Division
was tasked
with driving south and securing the immediate west flank of the Vire
River. By July 10 the division had advanced to within a few kilometers
of Pont Hebert, only a handful of kilos west of St. Lo. In direct
support of the 120'" and 119th Infantry
Regiments (30th
Infantry Division) were elements of Combat Command "B" of the 3rd
Armored Division. By 0600, Combat Command B was attacking south,
between the infantry regiments, with Hauts Vents as its objective.
Earlier, Task Force Y (each Combat Command was made up of several "task
forces" each with about a battalion of tanks and armored infantry) had
secured advanced positions. By 0600 Task Force X was moving through
Task Force Y to begin the advance.
Opposing the US drive were beleaguered elements of Battlegroup Heintz
(of the 275th
Infantry Division). Though relatively new to Normandy, the unit had
taken over 30% casualties by 9 July. The soldiers of Battlegroup Heintz
struggled to hold until armored reinforcements from Panzer Lehr, now on
the way, could relieve them.
German Orders: Prevent US victory conditions.
US Orders: Capture either of the two middle-most
houses.
Game Length: 12-15 Turns.
After a two minute slence in rememberence of those who have given their lives in war we commenced the game. A summary account of the battle, with rolling presentation, is available on the link below.
The americans had one squad advancing to the west with their main force
heading down the easterly road in 'Convoy Mode'. The western force
immediately encountered a german squad and close assaulted in a bloody
encounter that wiped out the germans but left the americans that
remained wounded and exhausted. A german MMG team to the south may have
caused further havoc but their gun jammed.
The main column encountered a minefield, AT gun fire from their exposed
eastern flank, and 10.5cm artillery fire. Though there were a few near
scrapes the convoy split, laying down smoke to prevent being sighted by
the AT guns. The armoured cars encountered panzerfaust fire and an AT
gun in the hedgerow near one of the objective houses. All three M8s
were destroyed.
The american main force then headed west through the bocage to attack
with armour down the road and infantry through bocage. Though suffering
two Sherman and one M3 halftrack casualty, the americans managed to
force home their numerical advantage and take both objective houses. A
map below shows the main thrusts from the americans (in green), and the
german movement (in blue). The Wirblewind in the Orchard moved to
protect their HQ in the eastern of the two objective houses (in red).
The game was a victory to the americans, thanks
in part to my carefull application of the off board fire, the use of
'Convoy Mode' and the extra time I gave. However the american forces
took many casualties to achieve their objective, half of them being
vehicle crews that suffered from a combination of german heavy weapon
fire and close assault/panzerfaust attacks.
The german squad to the East was squandered. Rapidly outflanked, it
managed to blunt the advance of the M8 armoured cars, but was then
ineffective. They needed to be in better position to hold the houses.
They were largely thrown away in a doomed assault on some american
halftracks. Other than that the german defence was stoic and well
played.
The american commanders were cross about the limited tactical options
provided by the scenario. As players they failed their morale check as
they took AT gun fire and artillery fire in the 'field of death'. This
broke up the convoy but failed to do any damage. I added two game turns
to the scenario. This extra time enabled
them to rethink, and thrust West to successfully finish their attack.
Were I to run this again I would consider ignoring the board edge fire,
allow the americans to attack from the
North board edge, and give the germans another squad with panzerfausts.
Many of the players emailed me to say how much they enjoyed the day,
and I have to say that the whole thing looked fantastic! This was the
wargame table I have always wanted since I was a young lad. Pleased...
Victory Points
American KIA = 25 (13 in vehicles)
German KIA = 26 (3 in the Wirblewind)
American VPs = 31 (plus 6 attachment credits)
German VPs = 25