Intensive Spearhead action

After an introductory Spearhead WW2 game last week, this week we broke down into two games with one player per side, and slightly larger forces on each side. Each side saw a reinforced German battalion battling a small allied regiment reinforce with armour.

Both tables set up amidst a hush as plans were drawn

Initial deployment and first moves on each table

Game 1:

In this game the German battalion had been reinforced with a company of StuG IIIs in support. The opposing American forces consisted of two infantry battalions supported with artillery and an armoured battalion.

The German advance on the left was focussed on the his right flank, but this meant that the German left was open to the American player's plan to attack with armour. This did however leave the American armour without immediate infantry support.

The American armour was given new orders from reserve to hook around onto the German left

Meanwhile the American infantry battalions were caught in the open and came under fire from German infantry that had taken up ambush positions in the wooded areas

The American infantry were taking heavy casualties when time ran out. The American armour was on the verge of appearing on the German left. It had been lucky not to run into any German infantry as it forced its way through the woods.

Game 2:

In this game a German infantry battalion with two platoons of PzkwIVs attached was trying to force it's way forward against a British force of two battalions supported by a company of Cromwell VIIs

The German plan had failed to consider the movements of any enemy armour and so as it swept across the centre it took flank fire for the Cromwells. This was never going to end well for the German forces, with both platoons of PzkwIVs destroyed. They did manage to destroy one squadron of Cromwells in the short bloody fire fight.

The German player used a very unconventional manoeuvre to shift to his left to take position on the ridge line upper left on the photo

The British player meanwhile had made a very conservative plan. His infantry were stalled (lower right) while his armour manoeuvred unsupported to try to apply pressure on the new German position

The German infantry began to take casualties from tank fire but sent AT teams forward to apply pressure on the British armour. 

At this stage this game had also run out of time. There was plenty of learning here. As with Crossfire, the allied players had not made effective use of their supporting artillery, and they had also failed to think through plans about where the enemy might be, and how best to manoeuvre to try to defeat him. This meant that support weapons generally were not well deployed.

I suspect that these lessons were well learned. They won't make those same mistakes again. An awesome morning's 'gaming.