Bydgoszcz, Poland 1939

This club meeting Unlucky General decided to run out his early war Germans vs my Polish. My units are part of the 9th Infantry division, so I picked a scenario around were the 9th was deployed on the 3rd of September after falling back in the face of the Wehrmacht divisions of the 2nd Motorised -armoured in the outer suburbs of Bydgoszcz.

I could not roll a 5 or 6 all game on my tanks or anti amour all game, so the germans closed to short range and murdered my Polish in there trenches! I still have not managed to pull off a win with the Poles as yet but I still enjoy the rinky dink nature of the AT guns!

Enjoy the pictures

cheers
Matt

cheers

Matt

Golden Monty RF weekend

Well a number of the guys got together to play out the 200, 300 and 400 point battle groups in the RF Normandy Campaign book on the weekend, I played one game as a stand in for a Brit player as I did not finish my FJ that are still on my desk awaiting some love. A big thanks to those people who traveled down from the Cumberland Society in Sydney to add some new players to our RF group in Goulburn.

 Each table had a terrain and road set up that was worth bonus points each set up:- the  different options were,
200 point single village, one wood and one hill each and 24 ft of Hedges, crossroad
300 point two villages, one wood, one hill each and one wood and one hill extra that had to be in the set up area between the troops.
400 point one town, one wood, one hill each and one wood and one hill extra that had to be in the set up area between the troops.

Panzer Lehr was the most popular choice for the Axis and US armoured btn the most popular for the allied.

Some photos that I managed to take

Presidential Gaurd Principality of Kastriot

I recently finished these miniatures from the old 1/72nd Esci Spetsnaz range. I painted them for the Guild "Green" painting competition. They will become part of my Presidential guard in my modern Imagi-nation, the Principality of Kastriot.

Cheers

Matt

Australian War Memorial Open Day

I have been meaning to post these pictures from the Australian War Memorial open day back in April, I concentrated on the displays outside as I always manage to drop in at least once a month for a look through the galleries inside the memorial.

Australian Light Horse Display
from left to right
1920 -  1935 NSW Lancers uniform, 1914-19 Light Horse uniform, NSW Mounted Rifles 1899-1902 (Boer War) uniform

1920 -  1935 NSW Lancers uniform, 1914-19 Light Horse uniform, NSW Mounted Rifles 1899-1902 (Boer War) uniform

Bushmaster

Vietnam Era SWB Landrover with 105mm recoilless (the bright green seat covers are wrong.....)

WW1 era Ambulance

Japanese Ha-Go light tank, captured at Milne bay, September 1942

Soviet ZPU-2 captured in Afganistan

Cheers

Matt

Normandy 44

Another Club meet Game in June, most of the boys played in this nail biter, some lovely terrain by Boydelli, Mick and the Cardinal. Starkadder, Rhino, RCT and Dave played also. Figures are mostly Valiant and the vehicles are mixed Raventhorpe, Britannia and plastic kits
The table

cheers

matt

Battle for Bodange, Belgium Sept 1940

Battle for Bodange 

At the June club meeting myself and Ian rolled out a Early war game. I have a single batn of Chasseur Ardennais that I have had for ten or more years, that has only ever had one other outing, I also have a frontier cyclist batn that has never been in action. A few touch ups were required before I put them on the table for the game. 

At some stage I also plan too add a Hurricane fighter and some T15 and T13s and another coy or two of Belgian line so I can feild a full Btn.

I wrote a scenario based around the villages of Bodange and Wissembach andñ the river crossings they commanded. Historically only the 5th company of the 1st Division of Chasseur Ardennais defended these villages and put up such a great defence the Germans thought they were fighting a whole batn, they held up the lead elements of the 1st Panzer Division for a whole day, only a few men remainded when they surrendered, tired and out of Ammunition. Today the road from Fauvillers to Bodange in thier honour is called "Rue des Chasseur Ardennais".

The scenario required elements of the 1st Panzer division to get off the table through Bodange in ten turns, all of the belgian troops started in prepared dug in positions. 

Order of Battle Belgians

Frontier cyclist battalion 
1 HQ coy  inc 50mm mortar, 1 x MMG,  OC and 5 ORS
2 x coys of 8 infantry (cyclists)

Deployment
Defending the Bodange and Wissembach crossroads
Special Rules
Start game dug in hard Cover, test at 25% casualties 

Chasseur Ardennais
1 x HQ coy, 1 x 75mm Mortar, 1 x MMG, OC and  medic, 3 ORs
2 x coys of Chasseur Ardennais 8 figs
1 x support coy 47mm AT gun, 1 x HMG

Armour
2 x T13 47mm  (in the game I used FT17 37mm as stand ins)


Belgian Chassuer Ardennais Deployment
HQ in Bodange
1 coy Bodange
1 coy  Wissembach
Support coy  Bodange
2 x FT17 Wissembach

special rules Cassuer Ardennais test as Elite fore as regulars.

German 1st Panzer Division
Recon Btn
Armoured car coy

1 x 222
1 x 232
1 x Coy in 251 8 figs
1 x coy in Steyr 8 figs
1 x  coy on MC and MCC 8 figs
1 x support coy inf gun, 1 x MMG 6 figs

Schutzen battalion 1
1 x HQ coy 6 figs 50mm mortar
3 x coys 251 8 figs
1 x supp coy Inf gun, 2 x MMG, 1 x 37mm AT 9 figs Trucks x 2

Panzer batn 1
HQ coy 1 x Panzer IB, 1 x sdkfz 265
1 Coy 2 x Panzer IIA 2cm KwK 30 L/55 
1 Coy 3 x Panzer IIIA 3.7cm KwK 36 L/46.5
1 Coy 1 x Panzer IVA Kwk 37L25 75mm  

German Deployment

• Recon batn sets up on the south eastern road or may enter along the sawmill railway line from Radelange or the Warnach road.
• Infantry and armour arrive on the Warnach road.
• Dice each turn for arrival of each coy, 4 + they arrive.

Special Rules

• All Belgians start the game dug in heavy cover.

• Enemy units may only target troops dug in after successful observation

• Belgian Bunkers have 3pts before detroyed.

• German Armour may only use open country the forests are unpassable.

The

;

With more than 50% casulties and captured the Belgians fail the morale test and surrender.

A great day out and a close one, 

Changes I would make.

1. The Militia line of defence should of been unflankable on the left it would of held on longer. Also a AT gun in support would of made short work of the A/C, they did manage to destroy two coys of Inf though so the bunker worked well with the MG.
2. I should of only made the roads passable for tanks.
3. The Germans managed to knock out the AT gun with a dive bomber, we should of used the arty obeservation and radio rolls when it had fired.
4. The amount of PZIII was too high, perhaps more panzer I and IIs would of been better.
5. The FT 17 is a shite tank........say no more...Two T13s would of made a bigger difference!
6. No supression of infantry in defences, for two turns the Belgians were suppressed after failing HE tests on one bunker. therefore the whole batn was supressed on the whole defensive network.
7. defensive Arty for the Belgians would of helped.

Figs
Belgians
 Militia and Chassuers Blitz/batlefeild ranges
FT17 Matchbox

Germans
Various plastic infantry 
Matchbox A/C  & halftracks 
Revell panzers
Hasegawa A/ 

Airfix A/C and trucks 

cheers

Matt