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Thursday, October 19, 2017

New Additions - Battletech


Battletech - just when I think I have enough figures...

Oh well, I really enjoy painting them.  Let's have a look at the newest additions to the 1st Argyle Rangers.



We have some new Ferret VTOLs, which are actually some NATO choppers from another company. Annoyingly, unlike Battletech figures, they didn't come with stands and I had to buy them separately.. But the details is very nice.

I'm intending to use them as incredibly fast spotters for long range missiles and eventually artillery. 


I absolutely love using  the Karnov Transport VTOL in game. Fast and delicate, for the BV cost it is incredible to move your infantry around.  And since we allow rappel lines to be used, this bad boy can drop an anti-mech squad onto an enemy mech and do some serious damage.

So naturally, I needed a second one painted up to double the damage.


Next up, two Manticore Tanks.  I'm very excited to try these out on the table.  They seem the perfect compromise between the expensive heavy tanks and the near useless light tanks.


Now, I promised myself I didn't need any more mechs, but the Wolverine just caught my attention. It's weapon load out and jump jet variant seemed a nice middle of the road mech. It's a big expensive in terms of BV, but I think it may well be worth it.




Wednesday, October 11, 2017

Chain of Command: Back in Action!


Chain of Command... it's been too long.

Near the Rhine - Jerry's just beyond those fields and orchards and our platoon is ready to win one for ole Blighty. 

Patrol phase went very well, as Fritz took three jump off points and I was able to lock two down in the orchard on the third move.


The lead section took positions in the peasant hovel, the sergeant ordering this men to cover the field and fire at the first sign of the enemy.


Fritz was cautious, uncharacteristically quiet.  The "O" Group ordered the support Sherman forward to a Hull Down position at the hedge line.


The platoon Sergeant deployed behind the house along with the platoon's mortar team.  Surprisingly, they didn't fire a single shot all game.  Smoke just never became necessary.


Contact!  Jerry came out swinging, with one Panzergrenadier section with an additional tripod mounted MG42.   Trouble!


The MGs opened up on the house, but the fire was ineffective. Most of the section was out of line of sight thanks to the apple orchard.


With Fritz deploying left, I deployed another section, this time at the edge of the field on the right.


Hoping to lure out those pesky Panzerschrecks, a Bren carrier sped up the road past the Sherman. Its armor made it nearly invulnerable to the machine guns of the enemy.



Effective fire from the Germans sent the men in the house fleeing from the windows and out of danger after three men were killed in a hail of bullets.


The Bren gun in the carrier took up the task of keeping Jerry's head down.


To my surprise, it was extremely effective, sending the Germans fleeing into the orchard.  Score one for the underrated Universal Carrier!


Meanwhile, the infantry section on the right began rushing forward across the field, hoping to put pressure on the enemy jump off points.


With the Germans retreating back into the orchard, it was time to commit the remaining forces, covering the advancing infantry.




The platoon's Lieutenant moved up to organize the firing line.
 

Reaching the far end of the field, the infantry were in sight of the jump off point, but could not stop the Germans from deploying their last two sections.


However after a round of withering fire across the field, the counter fire almost immediately pinned on of the two deploying sections. Three British sections and the tank's .50 caliber HMG concentrated all their fire to great effect.



Meanwhile, on the right, Fritz undertook a desperate move. Deploying a Panzerschreck team in the open to gain the optimal shot on the Bren Carrier, hoping to damage British morale by its destruction.



However the carrier was on overwatch and took out the Schreck team before it could fire.


Meanwhile on the right, the concentrated fire broke one enemy team, while fire from the house suppressed the machine guns in the other section.


Finally the rest of the first section broke, fleeing off the table with their junior leader. At this point German morale was evaporating.


Lo, a second Schreck doth appear!  Thankfully it missed its shot against the Bren Carrier.


However those German machine guns, despite being under covering fire, broke a British team, sending it, and its Junior leader fleeing for the hills. British morale started a bit behind the German, and this loss hurt.


Fire from the Bren killed the Schreck's loader, nearly breaking the team.  But the gunner was able to get off one more shot, to no avail.


British infantry was poised to charge the enemy jump off point, but an unlucky shot wounded the junior officer, more or less freezing the team in place.


Two German sections remained, doing their best to annihilate the advancing infantry.


But as my buddy Fritz likes to say, "big guns never tire". The .50 caliber continued firing across the field, shredding the light cover and the flesh behind it.


The German leader was killed, breaking the Germans and sending them fleeing back across the Rhine.  Victory to Britannia!!


Monday, October 9, 2017

An Expensive Engagement

Another intense game with Fritz. It's actually been a few weeks since we've played, so I've lost some of the details, but here's some pictures.  Game was 6 or 7K Battle Value, and I uncharacteristically played nearly ALL heavy armor.  Fritz fielded his new favorite lance, LRM missile spam combined with nimble (and this time, deadly) Locusts.


Col. Laval's Marauder II.


The Enemy.  Two Archers and two Longbows... closing is going to be nasty.


Supporting the missile boats, Locusts.


Unusually heavy lance for me:  aside from the Marauder II, there's a Stalker, Crusader and Von Luckner.  Out of the shot (flanking) is a single light mech, a Jenner.


Seriously unlucky start to the game.  Missiles get lucky and blow up the Von Luckner's turret in a single (critical) shot.






Another unfortunate twist of fate - a lucky rear armor shot on the Jenner brings it down.  The Locusts were the MVPs of this game.



Finally, we close to short range.




Oh, and I had a platoon of Jump Infantry.  Took them a long time to catch up, but they managed to isolate a Longbow... and take it out!



Locust catching rear armor on a Stalker and kicking it in the head!


But once we closed, the missile boats go down quick.


The Crusader goes down, leaving the Marauder to finish the job alone. Only the Locusts and a single Archer remain.


The Marauder can really soak up damage with no chance of ammo explosions. But while the rear armor is robust, it's not anywhere near as solid as the front. The Locusts begin to wear away at it.





PPCs finally bring down the last enemy heavy, but on the same turn the Locusts score two Gyro hits, downing the otherwise robust Marauder. Still able to fire, it's not out completely, but we call the game at this point.  An expensive draw.