The object of the game was for the Germans to defend three points on the board, using some little collections of oil drums, etc as representations. All three were in my deployment zone, and the Germans would only win if all three remained just in my hands. The Americans win if they take at least two of them, and if they take only one it is a draw. The game would last six turns, whatever happened.
The Germans: 4 Infantry squads (A veteran assault team and grenadier team with Panzerfaust AT weapons, and two regular grenadier squads both with AT weapons,) with a Panzer tank, a Martyr Self-propelled AT Gun, and a sniper team in support). Commanding the bunch was a 1st and 2nd Lt with assistants.
The Americans: 3 infantry teams, one as veteran, two medium machine guns, a mortar teams with a spotter, two jeeps (one with MMG), a sniper, A self-propelled AT gun, and an armored car.
The way the scenario went, I could deploy at least half my units on turn one, then take the rest as reserves one turn two. As the Americans get a pre-game bombardment, I kept exactly half my force back. I deployed as close to the markers as I could get. The left:
And the middle.
I also got my snipers up into the center building.
I deployed the third team on the right, actually a bit ahead of the objective. I was hedging my bets to see how Nate would deploy. Would he go heavy on one side, or spread out? I held my assault team in reserve to deploy where it was needed after the Americans were in.
It begins! Nate runs his sniper up into cover, and my sniper immediately puts a bullet in his head. Without the sniper, the spotter flees.
Nate's jeep deploys on the road and rushes forward to take shots at my infantry. It misses and assault rifle fire tears holes in the engine block, destroying it.
The armored car and the second jeep deploy together. The jeep contains a bazooka team, ready to rush up close to my panzer when I deploy it. My infantry take cover in the ruins, amid heavy fire.
The armored car's machine gun bore down on them.
Killing a rifleman, and keeping everyone else's head down.
The American infantry approach the left, with a mortar team hiding in the rear. I'm starting to get an idea that Nate intends to go for the left objective first.
Another infantry team fires into the building at center, killing four of my men. Ouch, this is starting to hurt.
The armored car, meanwhile, continues to tear up the squad on the right.
My panzer deploys, taking a shot at the jeep with the bazooka team on board, but it misses. The bazooka team charges into the road and fires at the tank. It strikes the front armor, but at a bad angle and the tank emerges unscathed.
The assault team deploys on the right to counter the threat, gunning the whole team down.
With my Tank on the board, I wanted to finish off the only other thing that could hurt it - the American's self-propelled AT gun. I moved up my infantry at center to just behind a hill. I needed to get close to use the panzerfaust. The infantry fired, but missed, and the tanks and opposing infantry cut most of them down.
Meanwhile, my own AT gun came on and just barely had enough speed to get into the road and line up a shot against the American AT gun.
And sends its shell into the enemy's crew compartment, sending up a plume of smoke as the vehicle burned. At this point, Nate no longer had any anti-tank weapons.
While things were looking good for the Germans, the Americans were tenacious, and shots rang back and forth from the two ruined buildings on either side of the road.
After shooting up my infantry at center, Nate took a gamble and moved his own infantry forward to try to take the building on my side of the road. I moved my tank straight up the road and unloaded my machine guns on them. As they were in the open, it went rather well.
With the right seeming well under control I moved my assault team towards the center, planning to use them to reinforce the left eventually. Nate had two squads looking to rush in and assault the building my infantry were using for cover. If they succeeded, they would easily take the left objective.
Nate makes his move. His infantry charge out of their cover and advance up the road, shooting as they move. They kill another man, and pin down the rest.
After the tank slaughtered the infantry at the center, one man remained. My 1st Lt put him out of his misery.
My men manage to activate thanks to my 2nd Lt sharing the building with them, and fire into the Americans in the road, killing four of them. They make their morale check, and Nate's going to keep them coming.
But he has a second force of riflemen rushing around the building from the other direction, backed up by their own officer. My assault team, now at the center of the board, claim several casualties, but American machine gun fire causes some of their own.
And with a tragic series of random German activations, more of the team is cut down. Two squads remain, but they only have 3 and 4 men respectively to assault with.
On yet another German dice draw, the men in the house activate and add to the American casualties.
On the right, the last American vehicle, the armored car, is destroyed by Panzerschrecks.
With the right secure, Nate is fighting for a draw at best, throwing everything at the left. The American infantry rush the building, killing several Germans before being killed to a man.
Only one American soldier remains on the left in reach of the objective. It's the American Lieutenant. It's the sixth turn, and if he can rush the objective he can get a draw. Unfortunately for Nate, the Germans activate first and he's gunned down.
A German victory! And a satisfying one as we finally finished a game conclusively. Bolt Action is fun, I'd definitely play it again next time Nate comes by.
