Ulster Wargames Society - Sword Beach with Rapid Fire

UWS meeting today and I took part in a very nice game put on by Chris based on  landings on Sword Beach on 6th June 1944 using Rapid Fire (mainly Reloaded but with some bits of RF2).

Chris brought his usual superb terrain (10' x 5') depicting the beach area around Ouistreham and St Aubin using his lovely 20mm kit and terrain.

Some excellent looking concrete defences and landing craft included.

German defenders (with early intervention from elements of 21st Panzer) were controlled by Andy and Stevie with Jeremy, Ian and I commanding elements of the Great Crusade.

A really excellent game it was too (Rapid Fire shines for this sort of endeavour).

British divided into 3 separate landing waves with plenty of 'Funnies' and other armour in first wave and 3 Battalion of well equipped Infantry in following waves (with more armour and Commandoes).

Huns had bunkers with 50mm or 75mm (in the Casino) AT guns, with several MG bunkers and numerous weapons pits, with some Pz Grenadiers, Stugs, PzIIIs and couple of Marders arriving later.

Brits had a preliminary Naval Bombardment (which was pants) with ongoing support from naval assets (once FOO on table) and several sorties of  rocket armed Typhoons.

Germans had access to Merville Battery (we rolled to silence it and failed at start) and later some Nebelwerfers.

Initial turns saw Naval fire fail and German also fail to hit an landing vessels (thankfully)

First Allied wave landed on right at St Aubin with subsequent waves coming in at center and left (Commandoes directly at Ouistreham).

British had several DD Tanks most of which failed to reach beach.

Flail tanks cleared beaches of mines under a barrage of anti-tank fire whilst 'dust-bin' firing Petard armed Churchills struggled to deal with bunkers.

German direct fire proved very accurate initially (so many 5s and 6s !!) and soon British tanks were burning all across the beach with foot sloggers slowly cross the sands under fire

First RAF sortie was shot from the sky but this nastiness seemed to inspire the invading troops who then used demo charge and flames throwers to take out the Casino and defended building at St Aubin which put a dent in German firepower.

However their soon armour arrived and seemed the invaders might get overwhelmed on beach,

But British fire then proved deadly with Commandoes assaulting bunkers and a PzIII and the Marders lost to a further Typhoon sorties and Sherman fire.

By this stage the Hun beach defence line was pierced in several places and weight of Allied numbers was beginning to tell as position after position was destroyed and a British victory was declared albeit a rather bloody one.

Great stuff 

The invaders in their waves

Quiet before the storm

First wave disembarks near St Aubin

The Casino in Ouistreham untouched by naval fire and housing a nasty Pak 40

Allies ashore but Sherman burning

Central German bunker which survived naval fire, Petards and tank fire finally succumbing only to direct assault by Engineers

Slow progress (6" per turn in sand) across the beach

Formidable defences at Ouistreham, Several bunkers and that sea wall

Central area less formidable but swept by enfilading fire 

Beach obstacles and mines hampered the British armour

Note the two large Bunkers to rear represented supporting batteries further inland and could not fire directly onto beach or be fired upon but could target units at sea at which they proved to be pants

Action hot and heavy with both sides suffering losses (lots of brewed armour)

Commandoes have destroyed the Casino and are pressing further into town as last of British support units arrive 

The landing fleet has miraculously remained intact 

Central bunker has at last fallen as British armour moves passes by

Sea front at Ouistreham is in flames (fall of bunker on left cut of German access to support batteries)

Lots of burning armour on beach

But central zone has been fully breached 

Ding dong duels between Stugs at St Aubin 

Typhoon helps deal with Marders on road out of town

View from German side as Commandoes assault

And from crumbling centre

Last Hun reserves stalk Allied armour 

A busy beach indeed

The Commandoes advance 

Incredibly the German artillery failed to hit this target rich environment.

Also at club group of chaps (Dave S, Jeremy D, Dave M and Billy) played another Midgard game run by Tim with LOTR style armies battling along a river

The two Daves and Tom played a couple of FOGR games with rather interesting 17th Century African armies, Ethiopian and Sudanese both rather larger than usual European armies from period.

 

I also got to watch the UWS Table Formation Display Team try (I must emphasize the 'try') to stack tables (admittedly heavy beasts) using some sort of hey hoppla alley opp shortcut for several minutes before reverting to usual brute force option. 

Rapid Fire Re-loaded - Push on Capriquet Airfield scenario played

Played 'The Push On Capriquet Airfield' scenario with my son using Rapid Fore Reloaded (for which it is designed) as it is pretty easy to play and teach.

Steven took the 12th SS bunch and I was Canadians.

Pretty tough for Cannucks with objective at far end of table and lots of Panzers on your flanks but good fun game as lots of Tanks on both sides.

I set up a screen just outside Buron as well aware a KG would 'appear' (inactive until turn 3) on my left and pushed Bren carrier units and later a Tank Squadron down road into Authie.

We both took losses in initial exchanges of fire (my M10 Wolverine and Achilles first to brew) and the Hun artillery really punished any infantry targets their FOO could see (lack of allied artillery is unusual - but historically they out distanced their support).

My Typhoon support was singularly unimpressive throughout only causing a single damage to a PzIV and either failing to appear or being aborted by 20mm AA gun and eventually shot down by same (not clear if this ends all air support but we played that it did).

Eventually however Cannuck numbers began to tell and once all Panzers dealt with I was able to advance onto objective at Franqueville mostly unmolested although both my Battlegroups were very close to taking morale tests. 

SS being Elite in game are unlikely to fail morale especially if in hard cover and their remnants ended game in Abbey Ardenne being pummeled by my remaining tanks until I forced multiple morale checks which they eventually failed giving Canadians the victory.

Great fun with a straightforward simple and highly playable set of rules.

Loads of burning tanks at end (the tank vs tank system is very basic but it works in fast play setting and at scale of engagement represented).

Large church standing in for Ardenne Abbey being invested by arriving 12th SS units 

The 'northern group' set up ready for action later

Canadian armour deploys from Buron to protect road

SS attempt to interdict road from Authie to objective

Tank losses mounting for both sides

Authie under Cannuck control but also under fire

Canadian armour suffering

Panzers taking hits as well

Panzer IV near Abbey under constant fire (Fireflies very potent)

Mid-game view

Typhoon (Tempest model standing in) on yet another ineffective attack run

'Panzer Meyer' contemplates is mounting losses as Cannucks threaten