Sgt Smith runs for daylight

Things are moving along with Squadron Forward.   We are probably 2-3 weeks away!!  Think you will all love it.  Rich has changed the art work around to give it more of an internaitonal flavor.

Took a break from Squadron Forward, Vikings ( I play a fair amount of Leadership Matters, my variant of SAGA that I don't post as it does not generate much interest here. ) and manning for FY 2014 at my hospital to play a Platoon Forward game last weekend.  I chose my Desert Rat 1940 Platoon that has only had 1 battle.  You can read about it last November 2011.  One of the keys of Platoon Forward for me is it is sustainable.  By focusing on characters rather than a ridgid time sequence we can leave a platoon alone for 6 months and come back when I feel like it and pick right up. I don't have to play through a boring battle to get to the good stuff.

After the successful delaying action the platoon had been lucky to have seen little action for several days.   Sgt Smith had been running things with the Sergeant Majors help, not that there had bee much to run. He still felt bad for leaving the Leftenent.  No one in the platoon or comapny blamed him however.   He hurried over to the Major's bunker when summoned.  "Sgt, Eity made a mess of our minefields last attack.  The engineers are going out to repair it.  I would like you to take 2 sections out and keep any patrols from spoiling their fun, eh wot."

Sgt Smith  Optomistic/ position      Gr I             1st section
Cpl Egg Southcote   conformist/ weath    Gr II    2nd section
2in mtr

Mission   Screening   Engineers

Engineers are just off board to the south

There is a field to the right

What is your plan Sgt?

Sgt Smith decided to take his section and Egg's since Egg was a good leader and Crocket's boys had been through the wringer.  (morale down)   He place Egg on the left of the hill and himself with rifles and an ATR on the right of the hill with the bren in the field.

Pre game event gave the Italians extra "C" blinds but they rolled poorly.  They entered from the top right corner.



Sgt Smith gets the mtr going!

At first contact the Italians deployed their first truck and the Car started firing at the first section.



  
They laid down automatic fire which kept the Tommies heads down.  Then the bren gun jammed!  Sgt Smith, not hearing the gun firering moved down the hill into the field to assist.  Egg shifted his Bren team to fire but it was ineffective.

Seeing the fire slacken the Italians made their move.  The men from the first truck arose from the ravine and charged first section and the second truck sped for the field.

   

Italians pushing the leaderless rifles of 1st section

off the hill

Uninvited guests arrive!  That is Sgt Smith with the tommy gun

Sgt Smith retreats into the adobe house after rallying his bren team.  At this point a flare goes up signaling the engineers are done.  Mission accomplished!  Time to go home!

The Italians are rather insistant

 Egg collects 2nd section and leads then off the hill and starts to lay covering fire for 1st section.  ( I am concerned that we will be giving the Italians prisoners for the second time in two battles!)    The bren team is killed in the house while Sgt Smith escapes with a light wound.  He joins up with 3 riflemen who are left and things look bleak.  They managed to push back the Italians coming down the hill.

  

Sgt Smith runs for daylight!!

Sgt Smith sees the road 60 yards away and yells, " Come on lads" and runs like he had never run in his life.  All 4 tommies make it to the road where 2nd section is waiting thus ending a very exciting scenario!!

I got an ingame event that Sgt Smith impressed Cpl Egg so his great escape quickly makes the rounds and the tale growing taller by the hour.  Sgt Smith's popularity goes up by 1 to 2 but his skill as a leader stays at gr I as I missed my AKOT roll to get him upgraded which I thought was "possible".  My 2 prescribed events for the platoon are that the 4 men we lost this battle plus our bren gun will not be replaced (ouch)  and our new platoon leader show up.  SLt Richard Audley, straight from the academy.  Apparently the Audley's have fought in every war for the crown since 1812.  Unfortunalty Dicky did not learn much in school as he is a Gr I leader.   Should prove interesting...

For those of you that want to play this have the british have to hold the Italians for 6 turns then they can withdraw off the south edge of the table. They can not dig in as they have not been here long nor do they plan to stay.   The Italians have the following forces.

1  Sahara car

3 squads

1 Lt   Gr II     3 NCOs    1 Gr II    2 Gr I

2-3 trucks 

Enjoy!!

Joe