After capturing Tobruk in June, Field Marshal Rommel pressed into Egypt with Panzer-Armee Afrika. The Desert Fox was trying one last big push towards the Nile before supply difficulties would make it impossible to conduct further offensive action. -- Scenario 1 of 3 in the Line In The Sand mini-campaign.
Attacker: German/Italian (21st Panzer Division / 132nd Armored Division Ariete)
Defender: New Zealand (2nd New Zealand Division)
8 turns
Players: 2 OBA: None Night: No
Unit Counts:
Squads: A:6.5 D:10.0
AFVs: A:9
M14/41 x 3 PzKpfw IIIJ x 2 SPW 250/1 SPW 250/sMG PSW 222(L) x 2
Took out three vehicles in one CC phase to put the game out of reach.
2020-05-25
(A) walter mcwilliams
vs
Tom Kerney
New Zealand win
J79 Rommel's Remedy Tom and I have talked about playing the desert for awhile and finally decided to take a break from PiF to play some Shelling gold. We're undertaking the entire Line In The Sand Mini and this is the first scenario in what looks like a very fun trilogy. Like all three of Pete's mini's the players start with a fixed OB but can choose some add-ons to tailor their forces. I choose 4 x PzIIIH, the 8 rad AC group and FB w/ no bombs and the Mtr/AA gun combo. Tom went with the Valentines, AA/AT combo and FB w/ bombs. My plan was simple, don't stop just keep moving, smash through and run for the exit. Our playing of this scenario was highlighted by extreme swings of fortune and misfortune on the dice. I hit Tom's anti-tank mine belt (2at each hex) at four different locations and failed to detonate a single one. In fact, the only vehicle jacked by mine was Tom's own when he made a desperate move to stop my final AFV from exiting. He rolled at least 4 snake eyes on to hit rolls (including twice rolling triple 1's) one was an improbable hit, which became a normal hit, which bounced and the other was an AC bomb which hit a 1/2 track on the final exit hex but was a dud so the 1/2 track exited for VP. I never rolled a single snake eyes the entire game except on a PTC lol. Tom also, managed to break and repair 3 guns/main armaments and generate two heroes. My dice were despicable, and had it not been for a big sniper which took out a 9-2/hero stack which would have completely wrecked my AFV in CC this playing would never have gone down to the final turn. My only other two breaks were shooting down one of his A/C (first ever in my long ASL career) and my mortar getting an early hit/result on his backstop AA gun which never recovered. Even when I stopped to shoot it was ineffective. The Italian infantry was useless, they infiltrated up the wadi but could get no further and had I relied on them to pierce the mine belt it would have been an epic fail, their armor was useful however. Tom ignored them for the most part and I managed to sneak one down the board edge and make a dash for the exit and the win. Tom managed to make the aforementioned last turn repairs and moved all guns to stop the tank. In the end, it was his A/C with another CH bomb that did the tank in. Yes folks, two AC with bombs snake eyes for both!!! The luck of the Irish I guess! Fun scenario, highly recommended take the balance if your the Axis.
