Volksgrenadiers - The Next Generation

Well I'm in a really good mood! It's well known that there has been one list I've been looking forwards to for, well forever - and when we chatted to Battlefront about the Berlin books and they said it would happen in the digital release - I started salivating - and now it's here! Yes Volksgrenadiers are back, and this time they're more reluctant and confident than ever before!

Just so you can catch up on why I love volksgrenadiers you can see my old articles on them here and here.

So what am I talking about? Well if you look at the new Berlin digital you can now take lists from 9. Armee and 12. Armee Grenadier Company. This allows you to have volksgrenadiers in both Reluctant Veteran and Confident Trained flavours - NUTS gave you Confident Vets, and Reluctant trained, and it you want you can use either Nachtjager digitals Fallschrimjager/Nachtjager's Marine grenadiers to almost give you Volksgrenadiers in both Fearless trained and Fearless veteran flavours. 

But whats changed in this book which has got me so damn excited? Well unlike those almost as awesome Nachtjager lists - it's back to have two panzerschrek teams - I love this extra move and fire AT - it also bulks out the platoons that little bit more. We also get a nice new options in the Schutzen platoon to give the platoon commander an Assault rifle - not an auto include, but I like it as a choice. Speaking about platoon size the other option now is either 2 or 4 HMG's - yes that may not seem ground breaking, back back in NUTS it was only 4 - the extra flexibility with points here is really useful - it also allows you to get to a nice 10 teams (7 in the platoon, 2 panzerschreks and an HMG) really helpful keeping you away from those pesky platoon morale tests - as there is no Enjoy the war in either of these lists.

You get all the same great weapons teams and regimental support as before - mortars, heavy mortars, infantry guns, but it's the recon slot where this get different and in my opinion better! Firstly you've lost the Skorenzy commando option - a shame but to me not a great loss. Secondly though, in your scout platoon you've lost Stosstaktik as a rule - this basically meant you auto attacked against other infantry units if you took the scout platoon - as much as I tried to ignore it, now having lost this it makes the list that little bit more effective. 

The next two slots are armour slots - these have changed a fair amount,  reflecting  new  equipment  and ratings available. The first box has the option for Hetzers and the new Waffentrager! now the waffentrager has its typically deadly PaK43 onboad, but struggles with it's mobility, where as we all know Hetzer's got to Hetz! This slot follows your armies main rating and offers some solid AT in my opinion. The second option here is where this get interesting - it's a Confident Trained assault gun platoon, with the option for StuG's (late) and StuH's (late) - the StuH is one of those vehicles I just can't get enough of, with it's high FP and Breakthrough gun - this is a fantastic element for this force - add in the recon option too and I think this army has a decent way of dealing with opponents infantry forces!

The next slot has even more tank options - we have however lost a couple from NUTS again - you no longer get Heer and SS panzer platoons - just one option mirroring the parent companies rating. You've also lost access to Brummbars, Jagdtigers and Jagdpanthers - and probably most depressing of all the neglected Sturm Tiger. Instead though you get CV panthers for all! and CT panthers for all - and in case Ben does read this - you still have the Panzer 4/70 as an option too - oh and i should also mention they can all get Tank Escorts now too. The big new one is the FV king tiger - it's SS, but having played Westfalen a lot I can really appreciate having one or two of these bad boys behind an infantry force.

You have another infantry box as well - alongside another sturm/schutzen platoon, you can have either a CT motorised panzer grenadier platoon - or a RV gepanzerte platoon - not sure how i would fit either in instantly to a list, but again its another tool in the bag. And finally in this box as with all LLW german lists the ever popular volkssturm platoon. You also still have access to the potentially over costed pioneers with their panzerfaust pioneer rifle team designation. 

You still retain the options for Pak 40's and Flak 43's as support in this list - but you also have some Luftwaffe AA options too - they stay RT - but are nice and cheap - so you can get the easy to hide flak 38, the trusty flak 43, and the new Flakzwilling 43 as well. You also get the Heavy AA option with flak 36,39 and 41's as options for a heavier hit.

Next you get Nebs - now they are down as CT - but with 3 15cm for 105 points - thats usually the cost for vet nebs - so i wonder what it really is? The rest of the arty is in either 3's or 6's and has lost some of the variety from NUTS but you still get FK40's and 15cm and 10.5cm arty too.

So whats my idea of a list looking like? well how about this?

Grenadierkompanie (Veteran) AoW 1750

·           Reluctant   ·           Veteran   Infantry Company POINTS 1750 Platoon Qty Unit Points Headquarters  Grenadierkompanie HQ (Veteran)   p.3 2 3 Cmd Panzerfaust Assault Rifle team Panzerschreck team 120 Combat Platoons Grenadier Sturm Platoon (Veteran)   p.3 1 4 2 1 Cmd Panzerfaust Assault Rifle team Panzerfaust Assault Rifle team Panzerfaust MG team Panzerschreck team 225 Grenadier Schützen Platoon (Veteran)   p.4 1 1 6 Cmd Panzerfaust SMG team Panzerschreck team Panzerfaust Rifle/MG team 190 Weapons Platoons Grenadier Mortar Platoon (Veteran)   p.4 1 2 4 Cmd SMG team Observer Rifle team 8cm GW34 mortar 110 Regimental Support Grenadier Scout Platoon (Veteran)   p.6 1 2 Cmd Panzerfaust SMG team Rifle team 70 Support Platoons Assault Gun Platoon   p.11 Confident  Trained 3 StuH42 (late) 225 Panzer Platoon   p.9 3 Panther G 505 Grenadier Anti-tank Gun Platoon (Veteran)   p.6 1 3 Cmd SMG team 7.5cm PaK40 gun 140 Rocket Launcher Battery   p.13 Confident  Trained 1 1 3 Cmd SMG team Observer Rifle team 15cm NW41 105 Luftwaffe Light Anti-aircraft Gun Platoon   p.14 Reluctant  Trained Allied Platoon 1 3 Cmd SMG team 2cm Flakvierling 38 gun 60 Berlin (Digital Exclusive) - German Late-War - Platoon Count: 9 It covers all bases and has all the options and tools I think you need.

Anyway I hope you've found my small obsession with volksgrenadiers interesting - and hopefully an AAR in the near future will follow!