Bolt Action report - Australians VS Germans (1000 points)

Last week was a bit busy and we could only manage a small demo game for a couple of new recruits at the club. Nevertheless, our newest member Filip really wanted his Australians to finally see some action and Zrudi was kind enough to oblige him with his Germans.

“Scenario 9: Point Defence” was picked at random and both players decided for the Germans to be the defenders. Three objectives were selected within their deployment zone:

1. A wrecked Hanomag – our favourite objective marker – in the north-west;
2. Barrels of fuel in the centre;
3. Hundreds of metres of industrial cables coiled up in the north-east;

The Armies

Australians:
1. Regular 1St Lieutenant with adjutant
2. Veteran Medic with soldier
3. Veteran Jungle Division Infantry Section (10 men)
4. Veteran Papuan Infantry Battalion Section (10 men)
5. Inexperienced Militia Infantry Section (10 men)
6. Regular Sniper Team
7. Regular MMG Team
8. Inexperienced Medium Mortar Team with Spotter
9. Veteran Flamethrower Team
10. Veteran PIAT team
11. Veteran Light Howitzer with Spotter
12. Regular Matilda Frog

Germans:
1. Regular 2nd Lieutenant with adjutant
2. Veteran Waffen-SS Squad (8 men)
3. Veteran Waffen-SS Squad (8 men)
4. Regular Heer Grenadier Squad (10 men)
5. Inexperienced Volks Grenadier Squad (8 men)
6. Inexperienced Hitler Youth Squad (10 kids)
7. Regular MMG Team
8. Regular MMG Team (as per some of the late war theatre selectors, Zrudi used two MMG teams in one platoon)
9. Regular Panzerschreck Team
10. Regular Light Howitzer
11. Veteran Motorcycle with machine-gun sidecar

Zrudi daringly deployed his entire army, not afraid of a possible preparatory bombardment. The western objective (Hanomag) was defended by an MG42 set up in an office building next to the wrecked half-track, one of the SS squads and the motorcycle.

The fuel supplies were surrounded by the Lieutenant, the Volks Grenadiers, the Hitler Youth, the second SS squad and the Panzerschreck, while the cables were guarded by the second MG42 and the Heer Grenadiers, with the light howitzer not too far away.

Afterwards Filip deployed his spotters and the sniper. The spotter for the Australian light howitzer found a nice vantage point in the ruined factory to the west. The mortar’s spotter also took up position on the western side of the battlefield, on the roof of the power plant in front of the Germans’ MG-nest in the office building. The sniper team was the only unit, that was deployed on the eastern side on the second floor of a bombed out house, overlooking the area around the central objective.

And finally, the Papuan squad was also deployed in ambush on the roof of the previously mentioned power plant to the west.

The battlefield (the left being north and the right being south)

Defender's view - the north-western objective

Defender's view - the central objective in the north

Defender's view - the north-eastern objective

And so, the battle could start!

Turn 1

The Australians unleashed a punishing artillery strike on the German positions before sending in their forces. The result was 9 out of 11 German units receiving an average of two pins and the Volks Grenadiers losing a member (they didn't get upgraded to Regular). Only the Panzerschreck team and the SS squad to the west emerged unscathed.

This gave the Australians the perfect cover to start bringing in their troops. Their light howitzer was moved on to a hill in the south-east by its crew, followed by the Jungle Division squad. To the west of them - going for the central objective - the Militia squad entered the battlefield, together with their Lieutenant, the medic, the flamethrower team, the PIAT team, the MMG team and the Matilda chugging along behind this blob at full speed. The only unit coming in from the south-west was the mortar team.

The first shots were fired by the Papuans, trying to thin down the advancing SS squad in front of them. Unfortunately their aim was off and they only managed to pin their target. The SS squad then fired back, pinning the Papuans and killing one of them. The MMG team in the office building wasted no time aiming their gun at the Papuans to support their SS comrades. The Papuans were further pinned and lost a couple more soldiers.

Also in the north-west, the motorcycle moved in close to the ruined factory, discovering the Australian spotter lurking within and firing at him. The spotter was pinned, but remained alive.

The defenders in the middle were mainly just repositioning. The central SS squad and the Hitler Youth ran towards the houses still intact in the centre of the map, followed by the Panzerschreck. The German Lieutenant was discussing tactics with his adjutant Hans, when a shot rang out and Hans simply collapsed into an ever-expanding pool of his own blood, while the Aussie sniper simply reloaded his rifle (once again, we committed a blunder and convinced ourselves, that even German HQ units have the “Initiative Training” ability,… which they don’t. So that Lieutenant was supposed to die in the first turn thanks to Filip’s accurate sniper). In reply, the Volks Grenadiers were sent to investigate the ruins from where the shot came.

The light howitzer tried to fire at the Australian Militia, now that they were visible, but the crew was still in shock from the bombardment (two pins can sometimes mean a lot of trouble).

The MG42 and the SS squad try to deal with the Papuans

The motorcycle investigates the ruined factory

Enter the main Aussies

Hans' death

Volks sent in to investigate

Turn 2

The western SS squad tried to put more pressure on the Papuans, but being fired upon previously was too much for them (failed order test with 1 pin). The Papuans therefore chose a different target and shot at the Hitler Youth this time, who were caught out in the open. Apart from pinning them, they also managed to kill one of them. But the Hitlerjugend, instead of freaking out, became only more determined in their efforts to win victory (Zrudi rolled a “5” on the squad’s Green ability and the kids were upgraded to Regular, but not to Fanatics).

The MMG team in the office building continued to pour lead on the enemy occupying the power plant and the motorcycle came to the conclusion that the spotter in the ruined factory wasn’t a major threat so it drove around the factory and joined in on shooting at the Papuans.

In the centre, the second SS squad moved through the narrow path between the central house and the shrubbery and opened fire at the Australian Militia. They would have killed three soldiers if not for the expertise of the Aussie medic, who managed to save two wounded.

The Volks Grenadiers in the east assaulted the sniper team hiding in the bombed out house and managed to eliminate them, although the sniper and his assistant did take three grenadiers with them.

The Jungle Division squad moved towards the centre, taking cover behind the building, where their sniper was killed moments earlier. They were soon joined by the flamethrower team and the Matilda, which was still focusing on trying to move at full speed, instead of providing fie support. The Militia squad and the PIAT moved on towards the central house, firing at the enemy on their way, but not hitting anything. The MMG team ran past them and set up their gun to cover the central and eastern German positions, ready to fire next turn.

The Australian mortar and howitzer both tried their luck at indirect fire, but neither of them hit anything. As for the Germans’ howitzer, the crew was still sitting on the ground around the cannon, holding their knees, rocking back and forth (order test failed again).

Hitlerjugend being shot at from the power plant roof

Central SS squad taking aim at the Militia

Volks Grenadiers reposition after dealing with the Aussie sniper

Turn 3

The turn started with the four remaining Volks Grenadiers moving out from behind cover and surprising the Australian MMG team. The Aussies simply couldn’t deal with the firepower unleashed at them at such close range and were all killed. This of course left the Volks Grenadiers themselves in the open.

The Militia wasted no time and opened fire at the Volks Grenadiers, killing two. The remaining two members died in close combat as the Jungle Division squad assaulted them through the bombed out house.

The Hitler Youth entered the central building and shot at the Militia squad and finally managed to kill a couple of them, due to the fact that their medic has moved on to support the Jungle Division squad. This however proved to be a fatal mistake as the Australian light howitzer was aimed at the central houses. A moment later a high explosive round burst through the wall and killed three of the Hitlerjugend hiding in the building. The SS squad next to the house kept their cool and continued firing at the Militia squad.

The Matilda finally joined the battle in earnest as it advanced around the bombed out building and fired its coaxial MMG at the Grenadiers hiding in the north-eastern ruin with the MG42 team. Unfortunately, the result was only one dead Grenadier.

In the west, the situation was more positive for the Germans. The combined firepower of the motorcycle and the SS squad finished off the last of the Papuans occupying the power plant. The MG42 in the office building moved to the roof, so it could support the centre and possibly the east.

Finally, seeing that the Matilda was now engaged in combat, the Panzerschreck team set up an ambush, staying close to the central house, but with a clear view of the section where they expected the Matilda to appear next.

Volks Grenadiers leap from cover and shoot the MG team dead

The Jungle Division squad finishes off the Volks Grenadiers

Aussie artillery taking aim at the Hitlerjugend in the central house

Turn 4

The Matilda advanced further, but remained behind cover, so as not to give the Panzerschreck team a chance. With the Grenadiers now in range, the Matilda used its flamethrower to clear the ruins around the eastern objective. The Grenadiers could not take the punishment and were obliterated. The Jungle Division squad was truly motivated by their tank’s success and decided to advance towards the ruins and the MG42 hiding within. Although they managed to pin it, the German machinegun responded with brutal precision. Furthermore, the German howitzer’s crew finally got their act together and fired at the Jungle Division unit in the open. A direct hit resulted in enough casualties for the whole squad to fail their morale check and flee the battlefield.

Tired of the ongoing firefight, the SS squad in the centre opted to assault the Australian Militia squad. The Militia had no chance and were all massacred. Unfortunately for the SS, they were left in the open and the Aussie light howitzer once again hit its mark. The SS suffered too many casualties and fled the battlefield.

In the west, the SS squad assaulted the lone spotter occupying the roof of the power plant with obvious results. The motorcycle moved towards the Australian mortar team and fired at them, but managed hit no one.

At this point, the club was about to close, so the battle had to end. Both parties agreed, that the cables in the east would have fallen into Aussie hands after another shot from the Matilda. There were no troops around the fuel barrels, but they would have required much sacrifice from the Australians. And finally, the Hanomag in the west was firmly under German control, guarded by the MG42 on the office building roof. And so the conflict ended in a draw.



Conclusion

All three of us agreed that the unit of the match was the Aussie light howitzer. It simply did magnificent carnage. The Australians seem to be a fun army to play, with the Papuans in my opinion being a particularly exotic unit. I’m looking forward to seeing them on the battlefield more often :)

Once again I hope you enjoyed the read!

Greger

Bolt Action report - Soviets VS Germans (1000 points)

We’ve met up with Zrudi on Friday (8th September) for a nice little game of Bolt Action, because it’s been a long time since we last played against each other.

After setting up the table we’ve decided to play “Scenario 3: Key Positions” from the rulebook. With three objectives:
1. medical supplies in a wrecked halftrack hidden in a factory to the west;
2. a fuel depot in the centre of the map;
3. a vital building on the eastern side of the map, overlooking the main road coming from the west;

The battlefield (the left side of the picture being south and the right side being north).

The Germans had 9 order dice to the Soviets’ 11. We both had a mostly veteran army.

Soviets:
1. 1st Lieutenant with adjutant
2. Forward air observer
3. Commissar
4. Veteran LMG squad (8 men)
5. Veteran tank riders (8 men)
6. Inexperienced free squad (12 men)
7. Veteran sniper team
8. Veteran flamethrower team
9. Veteran dog mines team (2 men)
10. Veteran truck with MMG
11. Veteran T-34/85

Germans:
1. 1st Lieutenant with adjutant
2. Veteran SS squad (8 men)
3. Veteran SS squad (8 men)
4. Veteran Sturmpioniere squad (8 men)
5. Hitlerjugend squad (10 kids)
6. Veteran sniper team
7. Opel Blitz
8. Opel Blitz
9. Regular Panzer IV Ausf H with Schürzen

We both designated our whole army to form the first wave of our attack, so everything would come on to the table during the first turn. Before we began, the Soviet sniper took up position in a bombed-out building in the south-east corner. The German sniper found a more advantageous spot on the roof of an office building to the north, while my air observer decided to climb on top of the power plant in the south-west. And so the battle began.


Turn 1

The Russian GAZ carrying the veteran LMG squad, the flamethrower and dog mines teams rolled in from the south-east and stopped on the bridge, making it possible for the transported units to disembark at any point. In response, the Panzer IV appeared to the north and wasted no time firing on the truck. Its main cannon missed, but the hull-mounted MMG managed to pin both the truck and its passengers. Using the benefit of the road, one of the Germans’ Opel trucks carrying the assault engineer squad drove right in front of the eastern objective, ready to unload its troops. But before that could happen, the dog mines team hopped out of the GAZ and released one of their hounds. (I now know that I made a mistake here, because dog mines are not allowed to target vehicles with a “Run” or “Advance” order next to them.) The dog scampered under the truck and exploded under the driver’s seat. Only one of the assault engineers died in the explosion, but they were pinned and forced to leave their burning transport behind.

With their transport in flames, the assault engineers still manage to occupy one of the objectives.

Elsewhere, the rest of the armies arrived. The T-34 took the western road and rolled northwards with its tank riders, who hopped off and entered the factory, hoping to secure the medical supplies hidden there. The tank was closely followed by the inexperienced free squad, their commissar and the 1st Lieutenant, going for the central objective.

The Russians enter from the centre and the west.

 The Germans brought in their two remaining veteran squads. One to the east to try and help the assault engineers, and one to the west to prevent the Soviet capture of the wrecked halftrack. The western unit was supported from the centre by the Hitlerjugend, who jumped out of the newly arrived second Opel, while the 1st Lieutenant took up position between them, so he could support his troops both in the west and the centre.

Germans preparing to engage the advancing Russians on the western side of the battlefield.

The German sniper tried to kill the Soviet air observer, before it could mark a target, but failed. The air observer in turn marked the school bus Blitz that brought in the Hitler Youth. The Soviet sniper managed to pin the trapped pioneers at least, but didn’t kill anyone.


Turn 2

The Soviet air support arrived in the form of a fighter-bomber. The only thing shooting at it was the Russians’ own GAZ truck, but it only managed to score two hits and didn’t bring the plane down. The aerial attack only mildly pinned German units in its path and didn’t even manage to destroy its target! The Opel Blitz survived with a punctured tire and remained immobilized for the rest of the game. The pilot’s biggest success was putting two pins on the Panzer IV, but other than that, his performance was terrible.

The struggle on the eastern side continued as the pioneers decided to exit the building they occupied and try to destroy the GAZ truck stuck on the bridge, still carrying the LMG squad and the flamethrower team. Luckily for the Russians, the Germans’ aim was terrible and not a single pin was received. In reply the Soviets drove their truck a bit closer to the pioneers to spray them with lead, but they themselves only managed to dish out one pin. The LMG squad passed its morale check and successfully left the truck, hoping to outwit the Germans with the support of the dog mines team by entering the building the pioneers left from the opposite direction. They firmly believed that the flamethrower will take care of the assault engineers, but unfortunately the team was too afraid to leave the GAZ (flamethrower fails morale check). As the LMG squad entered the objective building, their NCO looked out the window to check the situation outside, only to fall to the floor with a hole between his eyes. A victim of the German sniper. The Soviets in the building are further harassed by the eastern SS squad moving up the road.

In the meantime, the Panzer IV was so frightened by the air attack, that the driver simply started reversing (Panzer IV fails morale check).

The Soviet forces in the middle advanced on practically unopposed. The German Lieutenant’s adjutant shot a soldier from the Soviet inexperienced squad dead, but the squad became only more determined by the loss of their comrade (I rolled a “5” for the squad’s “Green” ability and they got upgraded to Regular).

In the west, the SS squad closest to the factory, ran up to its walls outside and fired on the Soviet tank riders hiding inside, killing one. The tank riders responded by fearlessly assaulting the Germans. Following a fierce close combat, the tank riders were wiped out, although they managed to kill three SS-men. Thanks to the Panzer IV not posing a threat for the moment, the T-34 decided to push its luck and advanced further to punish the SS squad that had killed the tank riders. Unfortunately, the Hitlerjugend squad was lying in wait for it and as soon as the vehicle became visible, they fired their Panzerfausts… and missed with all of them. The T-34 turned to face the SS squad while its turret swung around in the direction of the German children. MMGs barked, but the crew was still shook up by the Panzerfausts, because they didn’t manage to kill any of the soldiers in front of them. The coaxial MMG was more successful. Even though the shots only killed one child soldier, the Hitler Youth members were utterly terrified by seeing their schoolmate’s body get riddled with bullets (Zrudi rolled a “1” for the “Green” ability and ended up putting 6 more pins on the Hitlerjugend, leaving them with 7 in total).


Turn 3

In order to further thin down the enemy in the west, the T-34 continued to fire without repositioning. The SS squad in front of it lost a couple of members, while the Hitlerjugend squad received a further pin. With their 8 pins in total, the Hitler Youth broke ranks and ran away from the battle, never to be seen again. The SS squad was infuriated by this and used its own Panzerfausts point blank. Being more experienced with this type of weaponry than the children, they had no trouble hitting the vehicle and blowing it up.

Revenge for the children!

Taking advantage of the carnage, the free unit in the middle advanced even further north with their commissar and the Lieutenant in tow.

The pioneers decided it’s best if they assault the Soviet truck. The flamethrower team got out to defend their transport, but were butchered down. The GAZ driver crunched into reverse gear to put as much distance between the vehicle and the Germans as possible.

The Panzer IV successfully executed a Rally order, so the dog mines team took their chance and exited the building they occupied with the LMG team. They advanced towards the German tank and released their second dog. Once again, the dog managed to reach its target and exploded, but no visible damage was done to the Panzer.


Turn 4

The Russian Lieutenant was determined to secure the western sector and so ordered the free squad to assault the 3 SS men that destroyed the T-34. Although the Germans fought courageously, they simply couldn’t deal with being outnumbered almost 4 to 1 and were all killed. The Lieutenant and his adjutant followed the same example and assaulted the German Lieutenant’s unit. The German leader was caught by surprise and was killed in close combat together with his adjutant.

Emboldened by this, the Soviet LMG squad hiding in the objective building stormed out and attacked the SS squad that fired at them the previous turn. After a long and brutal fight the Russians emerged victorious with only a couple of their own dying.

The Panzer IV finally decided to actively participate in the battle and moved closer to the dog mines anti-tank team. It opened fire at them, but only managed to kill one of the two handlers.

In the south-east the German assault engineers moved a bit closer to the objective building and opened fire at the Russian LMG squad. Although pinned by the enemy fire, the squad lost no one.


Turn 5

The Soviet LMG squad was more determined than ever and with a cry of “Urrah!” ran towards the German assault engineers. After a lengthy combat, the Russians all died, but took 4 out of 6 Germans with them. The two remaining pioneers regrouped and as a last-ditch effort, tried to charge the Russian sniper team that had previously climbed down from their vantage point. The sniper team proved tougher than expected and the engineers both died.

At this point, being left with only a sniper team, a Panzer IV and an immobilized Opel Blitz, the Germans surrendered.


Conclusion

Like all the Bolt Action games I’ve played so far, this one also was a lot of fun! I did goof a little with the “dog mines rules” in the beginning and that might have changed things to some degree, but the western and central parts of the map were undeniably under Russian control.

Hope you enjoyed the read!

Greger

Introduction

I got into miniature wargaming in 2009, when I bought my first box of Games Workshop miniatures. It quickly became the ultimate hobby for me as the assembly and painting of miniatures is a very relaxing – although sometimes challenging – activity. And then of course there is the feeling of joy and pride when one finally gets the chance to field said models on the table and see them either fail miserably or achieve great glory!

The first game I decided to play – for which I bought that box I mentioned –, was Games Workshops’ Warhammer Fantasy Battles and I built up a Skaven army with great enthusiasm. It was indeed a ridiculously fun army to paint and play. But after some years I felt I needed to try something new and instead of checking out what other games there were out there, I decided to collect another army for Fantasy Battles: Beastmen. Unfortunately they didn’t live up to my expectations for various reasons and my Skaven no longer amused me, for which – I now see – the game system itself was responsible.

In November of 2013 however, came a lucky encounter. I finally agreed to meet a friend of mine at our local club here in Bratislava to try a new game for which he received a starter set. Bolt Action from Warlord Games. I was reluctant to try it at first, because I was afraid I’d end up with another “Beastmen-type” fiasco. Oh how wrong I was! A couple of days after my first Bolt Action battle I made my first purchase at Warlord Games and I have to say my love for this game is still going strong as there is always something new I can add to my existing armies, even though I only have two at the moment (Soviets and Hungarians). It’s going to be 4 years that I’m playing Bolt Action and the fun-factor doesn’t seem to fade.

I’ve also discovered Frostgrave this year, which is a lot of fun and it absolutely satisfies my craving for fantasy adventure. In addition I have a slowly growing Ghar army for Beyond the Gates of Antares and a small Ork army for the odd Warhammer 40k match.

Based on the feedback I got on my reports I wrote for various campaigns, I’ve decided to start this blog in order to share the fun. Hopefully these reports will interest – and mainly amuse – some of you out there.

Greger