AAR - Desert Rats Lorried Rifle Company Vs Volksgrenadiers - Hold The Line

Hi all,  Dr Alex here. This is the first outing my British Lorried Rifle company have had. I started getting this army together late last year when Dr Cox gave me a rifle company box for my birthday. I've been building them up and painting them as I go and for some reason (mainly due to Dr Cox bailing on me two weeks ago) I have ended up with an army I have completely painted (sans decals) before using. As such I fully expected this entire army to suffer from Shiny Model Syndrome and die horribly. Anyway, Dr Cox finally turned up at my door in the rain, clutching a scrap of paper and a box of toy soldiers, begging forgiveness for standing me up and because I'm a sucker for a cute face, I let him in...

The Desert Rats - Lorried Rifle Company (Reluctant Vets) HQ - 2 command teams with a jeep as they are cool Full Lorried Rifle Platoon with transport Lorried Rifle Platoon Lorried Rifle Platoon Lorried Carrier Platoon (1 squadron) Lorried Anti-tank Platoon (6 6pdr's) Lorried Heavy Mortar Platoon Armoured Platoon (3 Cromwells, 1 Firefly) Self Propelled Field Battery (8 Sextons) Air Observation Post

Dr Cox's Volksgrenadiers (Confident Vets) Hq with 2 extra panzerschreks Volksgrenadier Sturm Platoon Volksgrenadier Sturm Platoon Volksgrenadier Schutzen Short Scout Platoon Mortar Platoon (2 sections) Infantry Gun Platoon (IG37 4 guns) 3 Pak 40's 2 Sturm Tigers

Generated by WWPD's BatRepper Software.

The mission was Hold the Line, Dr Cox used his ability to auto attack against infantry so I was then

left with slightly less than half my army to hold off the fury of the Reich while I waited for the others to turn up.

The defensive deployment area. A forward objective near the Hedgerow on
the right flank and a rear objective in the woods in the centre.

 I deployed my Sextons and heavy mortars and then kept the 6 pdrs and a rifle platoon in ambush and then waited for the onslaught.

 Dr Cox deployed everything and then took his cheeky recon move to get right down my throat

before having a turn.

Dr Cox Turn 1 -

The Volksgrenadiers surged forwards across the board with the scout platoon supporting his platoon on my left flank moving towards the closer objective. He smoked the left hand observation Sherman and then managed to bail one of the central Sextons. After that it was time for the Desert Rats to show Fritz what they learnt on the fields of North Africa...

Is it a bacon tree? No it's a Ham-bush!
(it is however smoked)

Dr Alex Turn 1 -

The Rifle platoon who had been hiding next to the forward objective opened up on the advancing Volksgrenadiers with devastating effect as the caught the unsuspecting Nazi's on the move (they weren't doubling or anything, Dr Cox just rolled really badly, I got 7 hits, 5 stands died). The remaining Volksgrenaadiers decide that they have had enough already and bug out. Suddenly there was some breathing space on the left flank.

At the same time the 6 Pounders emerged to man their guns around the centre of the village, tracing

their sights across both flanks waiting for targets.

The artillery opened up, the Sextons took direction from the AOP and pinned the PAK 40's, killing one.

Not a bad opening salvo, but I still didn't feel that safe, given the screaming hoard of Nazi's rushing my somewhat limited lines and no hope of reinforcement for at least another turn.

Dr Cox Turn 2 -

Dr Cox keeps pressing the advance, hoping to overwhelm the British before the reinforcements arrive. His shooting is pretty ineffective, however he again smokes the observer Sherman along with the accompanying rifles and then the Sturm Tigers let rip with their amazing guns, they absolutely decimate their target, an observer team hiding in a building bothering no one. Dr Cox is a bully.

Clearly very threatening.

Dr Alex Turn 2 -


The ambushing rifle platoon weigh up their options for keeping possession of the forward objective long enough for reinforcements to arrive and decide they need to leave their foxholes, they advance on the scout platoon and open fire, this kills some Germans but they don't run away so bayonets are fixed and they stick it to them. The Rats kill the scouts except for the command team who decides that discretion is the better part of valour and pulls back rather than join the other scouts on the leafy floor of the forest. The rifles also pull back towards the objective and the safety of the hedgerow.

Over the Hedge and...

...into the woods.

The Sextons open fire again, killing another PaK 30 and pinning the central platoon. The 6 pounders split their fire at the remaining Volksgrenadiers and kill one of the central platoon's team.


Dr Cox Turn 3 -

The central Volksgrenadier platoon see the retreating Rifle platoon who have failed to make it back to cover and charge, they open fire, killing two and pinning the rest, then charge. The Sturm tigers join in and kill a rifle team.  The Rats, caught on the hop fire from the hip and gun down two of the attacking teams with defensive fire.

The Rats get caught in the open

The Volksgrenadiers carry on regardless and kill the light mortar team and 2iC who was with them, the remaining rifles take the opportunity to carry on their retreat and make it to the safety of the hedgerow. The Volksgrenadiers then try to make the distance to the woodland overlooking the forward objective.

Not a great position in which to stop and wait, on top of a hill,
in front of big guns.

Meanwhile, The Volksgreanadiers on the right flank advance and find the Sextons looking undefended as the climb the hill, they then decide to assault and silence the heavy guns. However they then fail their tank terror test and sit there like mugs.  In the mean time the mortars fail to range in and the smoke screen blows away,

Dr Alex Turn 3 -

Finally reserves to help push back the Nazi's. Unfortunately no one turns up.

However, the Rats grit their teeth and everything unpins except the 6 pounders. They're going to have to do this the hard way.

The Right hand Sextons fire over open sights at the Volksgrenadiers who have crested the hill, they kill two but don't pin the platoon. At this point the other Sextons fire indirectly and pin the survivors.

Around the forward objective, the observer Sherman moves forwards to attack the central platoon with his MG, alongside this firepower, the heavy mortars open up from the nearby corn fields and the remaining rifle team let fly now they are safe behind the hedgerow. Pretty much all the Central Platoon is killed and then they fail their morale check and start to slink away. The 1iC nearby spots this and shouts some encouragement, however the arguments mustered by the troops are clearly persuasive and the 1iC also decides to run away, another platoon gone. All that's left of the fearsome Nazi assault is some nervous looking Volksgrenadiers on the Right flank facing some Sextons.

The end of the battle for the forward objective

Dr Cox Turn 4 -

Naff all, the Volksgrenadier don't unpin and fail to dig in, nothing else happens. I'm not even going to put in a picture.

Dr Alex Turn 4 -

The cavalry arrives! On come the rifles in their lorries, driving hell for leather to the front in order to repulse what's left of the attack. Everything else does some shooting, Dr Cox's 2iC dies but not much else happens.

Dr Cox Turn 5 -

The command team of the scouts finally decides to run away and Dr Cox throws a little strop. The remaining Volksgrenadiers don't unpin or dig in and look very vulnerable in front of the Sextons for a second turn.

The AOP keeps circling, calling in bombardments

The Sturm tigers look around for a decent target and fail to find one, so they shoot at the rifle platoon remnants hiding in the hedgerows killing a team, but the remaining Rats pass their moral check and don't flee, quite frankly if they have lasted this long, they aren't going to run away now the Nazi's are on the ropes.

Dr Alex Turn 5 -

More Cavalry! On come the Cromwells. They make good speed up and between the right hand Sextons and then machine gun the remaining Volksgrenadiers killing most and the remaining teams run away.

What's left of the Nazi assault, some markers...

Dr Cox swears, a lot and cries. During this turn he was searching Ebay for a new dice set. He then concedes.

Final score 6-1 to the Rats! I've lost more men in a game of space hulk.

Thanks for reading.

Dr Alex