GJS
Perriers Ridge
PL_mik
Pzt_Wruff
5/11/04 Limits: Germans: 3 Tanks (He took 3 Tigers) Allies: 4 Tanks (3 Fly's and a Command Sherman) 1 Command tank max for both. I set no limit on Schreks. Looked like he had 2 of those. I took one Piat just for kicks as this map has a couple sweet spots for Piats if they can get lucky enough. Support: Air and Artillary for both. I focused the real strength of my forces on the flanks. Determined to take the Church in the north and the Farm in the southwest. If one failed then the other would be enough. That's not always expected by the opponent on this map. Especially in a ladder game. It's easier going through the towns center in classic last minute rush fashion imo, but I hate the rushes so I figured I'd play this thing out. He's good and knows the ladder, so I figured I'd be better off holding Perriers in the middle and breaking down his flanks rather than charging through the center of town as time expired. To start I charged up the main road and took Perriers right off. Comming under fire I lost all but 2 members of that squad who made it to the west side into the 2 story building. I could see him charging several squads to the towns center. Fine by me. I didn't take any mortar teams and didn't use my artillary birage. Just supressive fire from my 2 southern Fly's. He could have the Town Hall and the central Church. I'd set up to ambush him when he moved on Perriers VL and kept a squad there in reserve to take it back when he did. I worked forces towards the flanks. Taking the Market and continuing north, leaving a Fly there at the Market driveway while sending the Command Sherman through the east field heading north to meet up with 3 squads for an assault on the N. Church. Also secured vl's along the road up from the south and set up for a forward advance on the Farm in the southwest. Another Fly parked down southeast of Perriers waiting for Tigers to pop up around the towns center. Also put my Piat there on the corner of Perriers, but they were killed quickly today. So much for my Piat luck vs Tigers. So as it stood after first 10 minutes he had a 2 point advantage with his initial deploy and seemed happy to sit on that and wait for my next move. I brought a reserve up from the south and reinforced towards the center of town while clearing some hedges along the way with this 2 squad attachment. Now I had clear LOS from both sides (E/W) of the street on Perriers. That got his attention and he pulled 2 Tigers from the north to gang up on my Fly. The Fly and Tiger faced off immobile eachother then the 2nd Tiger showed up from behind the Town Hall to finish off the Fly. My Typhoon airstrike was the answer. Blowing up the still mobile tiger. Now I knew his 3rd Tiger must be in the south without a path to the north. Good. I attacked the Church in the north once my Sherman met up with the troops. Crossing the north hedge keeping squads spread out all along while crossing the road. mik called in his artillary birrage and my Sherman came under schrek attack from an adjacent building just south of the dirt road and immobilizing it. I opened fire with it's 75mm cannon on the building while my infantry moved in for the church. My squad up top forcing one of his out of the church to respond, putting them in LOS of the sherman and wiping them out. His MG42 hit and destroyed my point squad from west building while my main assault squad taking the Church only to lose it back to another german squad waiting in ambush in the Church. Still, If I took the farm and held Perriers, victory would be ours. I brought 2 squads west accross the southern field towards the Farm, leaving a Bren team in reserve, spotting his last Tiger up against the buildings 200m north of the farm behind a rusted tank wreck. It opened fire on my command squad moving along the hedge towards the farm with obscured LOS as my Fly swept in and caught it reloading, finally getting a decisive kill on one of his big cats while keeping the fly intact. This left the Farm defended by a single german squad which opened fire on my 2 inbound squads as they neared the farm. The fly moved in around the farm and wiped out the germans from the rear while hitting them also with what was left of my forward squad members head on along their cover hedge just east of the Farm building. Finally securing the Farm. I ordered an artillary birage on the center of town in last 1:30 to slow his inevitable assault on the Perriers major VL. It worked. His troops were pounded while they moved on the Perriers VL. Though they barely took Perriers VL momentarily, my ambushing squads cleared the way and resecured Perriers for the win. Nice fight mik! His aar at TH said something about my "tank luck". My Sherman immobile in the north. My Fly destroyed, another held back on the driveway of the Market by his schreks and a non-factor. The other Fly moving on the farm catching his Tiger reloading after firing on my infantry. When those TH top dogs lose to one of us rats it's always dumb luck I guess (nudge nudge) .
