Scenario Analysis: HazMo 4 — Kids These Days

In this post, we are going to take an in-depth look at HazMo 4, Kids These Days, using my ASL Tactical Maxims. By applying these maxims, I hope to show how a player may systematically approach a scenario to set up a cogent defense and make an initial plan to defend the victory conditions. For those who don’t have this pack, I cannot recommend it enough. It is available on the Hazardous Movement Gaming website or from an ASL retailer near you. It is a a solid recommend from me. Let’s get started.

Maxim 1: Victory Conditions

Right off the top, this is a complex scenario. The simple part is the Germans win if they collect 40 Victory Points (VP). But the straightforward part ends there. Germans receive VP in three ways:

1. Exit VP for units exited off the west edge
2. 15 VP if the British have not secured the village by turn 6
3. 15 VP if the Germans secure the village at game end

We will discuss securing the village in the terrain section, but for the time being, securing the village entails securing two building Locations. Unopposed, the Germans 92 VP of units/Gun they could exit. This is more than enough to win on its own if the Germans can secure an exit corridor. The Tigers are nearly invulnerable and represent 24 EVP if they make it off the map. Earning VPs for 2 and 3 is not essential, but will certainly ease the German player’s burden in the endgame.

Maxim 2: Terrain

The Germans must Fortify two stone building Locations. These two Locations represent “the village” in the VC. The side simultaneously controlling both Locations has currently “secured” the village. If the British capture both by turn 6, no matter how fleeting that control is, they deny the Germans 15 VP (number 2 above). Should the British player be the last to control both at game end, they deny the Germans 15 VP (number 3 above). If you are playing this, discuss this VC with your opponent so you both understand what must be done. These 30 VPs could be key to determining the victor. Never start a game until both sides agree on the VC. 

Per SSR, all walls and hedges are bocage. This will give any unit able to claim hex side bocage TEM a chance to claim concealment and the ability to remain concealed when moving behind bocage. This potentially allows the British to set up on-board concealed. It also allows the reinforcing Germans the opportunity to enter and move concealed depending on how the British prepare for the counter-attack.

Grain and Orchards provide some hindrance to fire for both sides. The British face a wide open space in their approach to the village, so creating a cover to cross this is important. Still, the British are going to suffer some damage getting into the village. This is just the cost of doing business. 

Lastly, the Germans get trenches and some AT-mines. The AT-Mines will allow the German to shut down some locations to AFV movement. A 2 factor AT-Mine will immobilize an AFV about 50% of the time (1 in 3 on entry, 1 in 3 on exit). This isn’t great, but immobilizing an AFV in an out of the way place is a minor victory for the Germans.

Map Overview

Influence on Infantry Movement:

The biggest issue for the British players is all the open ground. Somehow, the British must cover the wide open spaces to get into terrain. What’s worse, a British unit which breaks in open ground is hard pressed to get to rally terrain. Taking this into consideration, the number of approaches to the village are restricted.

Influence on Vehicular Movement:

There is very little Slow-Go or No-Go terrain here. The wood hexes will stop the AFVs from entering unless the owning player risks a bog. The AT-Mines will make some No-Go terrain for vehicles, but the British player can’t allow the threat of those to slow him down.

Conversely, the wide open spaces will also affect the Germans on exit. The British 57mm Gun will be a big threat for the half tracks seeking to exit. The German player will need to account for this in his planning.

Visualizing the Terrain’s Influence on the Battle

Looking at the map, the best avenue for a British approach to the village is through the southern half of the board, basically along the A16-G16-I17-Q6 road segment. This approach provides some protective TEM and rally and rout terrain. The British player has to be concerned with recycling units back into the attack.

Another possible attack route is along the extreme northern edge of the board. There is not likely to be much firepower up there and the British could try an armored assault to cover movement along this flank with an eye toward getting into the 9aP5 wood mass. Again, the British player has to be concerned with how he can recycle units back into the attack.

As much as the German player would like to protect against the two likely axis of approach, he HAS to protect against the British player just rushing the center of the map and getting right into the village. Any such attack must be repelled immediately.

The German player will also have to figure out how to cross this open ground in the end. As noted, even in the best of circumstances, the German player will need to exit at least 10 EVP of units off the west edge.

Maxim Three: Time

From the British jump-off point, the furthest possible stone building is 16 hexes away. There is plenty of time to make it to these locations by game end. Doing so would deny the German player 15 VP. The British are going to have to be aggressive to get there and control these Locations by turn 6 to deny the German player 15 VP. For the German player, the question is whether they can they defend the village through turn 6 to claim these 15 VP. Ideally, the German wants to deny the British control of the village through turn 6. The German reinforcements definitely have the might to retake the village at game end if needed.

The exit VC also forces us to consider that as well. Even if the Germans hold the village at game end and through the first 6 turns, the Germans must still find 10 EVP for the win. The Germans enter on the east edge on turn 6 and have 6 MPhs to exit off the west edge. Given the distance and time, the Germans will need to progress over 5 hexes per turn in order to fulfill the exit portion of VC. The fewer VPs the German earns through village control, the more units he will need to exit off the map.

Maxim 4: Order of Battle

Assessing the British OB

The British 51mm Mortars can put down smoke. This is concerning for the German player insofar as too much smoke could block LOS and prevent fire lanes.

The 9-2 with 2X4-5-8/MMG combo could be a formidable kill-stack depending on where it sets up. This grouping basically eliminates all German TEM and produces a 12+ fire power shot. I would expect this group to be opportunity fired in the first turn to punish anything that shows up. 

The Brits can set up on board or enter on turn 1. There are merits for either choice for the Shermans, but there is no reason to suspect the British Infantry will enter. That just makes their turn 6 race even harder.

For AT assets, the Brits bring on a 57L gun on turn 4. It is not likely this will affect the attack on the village, but it will play a key role in contesting the German exit. Given the scenario date, the British are fortunate to have just taken delivery of APDS special ammo. The 57L has D6 which is just about the sweet spot for shooting at half tracks qualifying as Moving Vehicular Targets. While the APDS is truly overkill for these targets, it may be more important to have two chances to hit at the 6TH level. The 57L APDC has a Basic TK# of 18, rising to 21 at a range of 0 -1 hexes, which can challenge a Tiger frontally and most likely knock it out from the side and rear. Any German exit is going to have to account for dealing with this Gun.

The British OB also includes Piats. With a 15TK, they can challenge a Tiger from the side and easily knock out a half track. Of course, the manning Infantry have to survive to get close enough to employ it, but fortune favors the bold.

Lastly, the British also have 70mm HE only OBA. This will also likely cover the exit in a hope of thwarting the Germans from getting off the necessary forces. Used properly, this will probably close one side of the map board and push any exiting half tracks onto the 57L and other AT assets to bag some of the softer targets the German is hoping to use for easy exit purposes.

Assessing the German OB

The at-start German OB is seriously challenged. They have a lot of ground to cover and not a lot of units to do it with. The two key aspects of their OB are the two MGs and the fire lanes they represent. These fire lanes have to be protected at almost all costs. Failure to do so could allow the Brits to just push through the middle of the board and directly into village on turn 2, which is a disaster for the Germans. Their biggest asset is all forces set up using Hidden Initial Placement. This is going to spook the British player. It is hard as hell looking at a blank board and knowing there are some boogie men hiding out there.

To protect the fire lanes, the Germans have inherent panzerfausts and a 75L. Placement of the 75L is going to force the German to make tough choices. It needs to be in more than one place, but sadly cannot be. At least at the beginning, it likely needs to take on the Shermans to whittle down the armor disadvantage. The APCR depletion on a 4 is unreliable, but if you get it, it will absolutely shred a Sherman.

The German reinforcements include 3 Tigers, a Stug IIIB, some SPW 251’s and a terrifying amount of German Infantry—including one Assault Engineer 8-3-8 with a smoke exponent of 5. This force is more than enough to take the village back if needed. The question is did the at start forces do enough to earn the 15VP before these troops arrive. Taking back the village (15 VP) and exiting another 25 VP to get to the requisite 40VP is a real challenge. The Tigers represent 24 VP; the half tracks another 15. The Stug IIIB, with its 9-2 AL represents another 10. None of these AFVs should feel comfortable facing off against a ROF 3 57L AT Gun. Any remaining Shermans should terrify the halftracks.

Making a Plan

Now we get to the fun stuff: setting up a defense to contain the British hoard. Recall Maxim 1, the VC above all else. As the Germans, we need to get to 40 VP. Control of the village, represented by controlling the two fortified building Locations, through turn 6 is worth 15 VPs. Controlling the village at game end is worth another 15 VPs. As the German, we need to select Locations that balance our need to still control it at the end of turn 6 with the need to regain control by the end of turn 11. Even at setup, we need to be considering the endgame and how we are going to achieve at least 15VP (Maxim 1)

Examining the map, the two blue lines represent what I think are the most likely avenues of approach to the village. Either will work and will provide the British with the best rally locations to reinvigorate a stalled attack (Maxim 2). As the German, you cannot allow the British to approach along the red arrow as this puts him into the village area in two turns (Maxim 3). We must delay his village entry—represented by the red arc—as long as possible, hopefully until turn 4, but certainly no sooner than turn 3 (Maxim 3).

The plan is to fall back into the L11/L12 fortified buildings in good-order and hold at all costs until turn 6. Everything remaining in the German OB has to be inside the red arc by the end of turn 3 (Maxim 1/2/3). This affords us the most protective TEM (Maxim 2), avoids the British 9-2 as long as possible (Maxim 4), and maximizes the German OB. One thing to note, the Germans have zero Infantry to spare. They cannot afford to throw away Infantry taking panzerfaust shots with desperation penalties.

This setup reflects my bias as to what I think is the most likely avenue of approach, which I think is along the southern edge of the map (Maxim 2). It also reflects my concern for stopping the direct approach to the village (Maxim 2). Both leaders man MGs to lay fire lanes (Maxim 3). Each manning squad will only fire on leaders if possible to slow the British recovery (Maxim 3/4). If no leaders show up, take shots at stacks and other valuable targets to punish a direct crossing.

Each of the full squads is positioned to do the same thing: punish a direct crossing. The bulk of the German forces are protecting the southern approach (Maxim 2). Recall that all German forces set up in concealment terrain are HIP. Also note that the units shown on top of the trenches are actually inside them. I represent as I do here for clarity.

The most interesting quandary is what to do with the Gun. Presented here are 4 options, A through D. It represents the best AT asset in the German OB (Maxim 4). IMO, position A represents the strongest position, but it is risky. Assume the British 9-2 will be in position to shoot the Gun as soon as it is revealed. Position A offers the greatest coverage of the British set up/entry area and can challenge Shermans set up to shoot smoke covering the British advance into the village.

Position B is a compromise. It covers much of the same ground as position A; it trades smaller TH#’s for a little more safety from the 9-2 (Maxims 2/4). This position also offers the opportunity to remain concealed until the Germans are ready to push for their exit VP (Maxim 1). It would come as a nasty surprise if it emerges here on or about turn 8, shooting Shermans covering the German exit area in the side. The British may push right on past it, driving into the village. It will take some steady nerves to not shoot, but the rewards might be game-winning.

Position C is a safe choice. It could help cover the northern approach to the village, particularly if shooting at approaching Infantry (Maxim 2/4). It is well in the rear and not likely to affect the game early. The threat of not knowing where it is can definitely slow some players (Maxim 3), but this position might have almost no impact on the game. Still, I think it is a Location for the Gun and it can certainly do some work here under the right conditions.

Position D has many of the same merits of Position A. It might cover the southern approach (Maxim 2), but it can also cover the center if needed. Positioned here, it is also likely to be out of the LOS of the British 9-2 increasing survivability (Maxims 2/3/4).

No matter where you set up the Gun, don’t forget you can bore sight by SSR. IMO, try to find some place likely to be entered by the British Infantry, particularly the 9-2 if possible. Minimizing his impact on the game, through smoking his position or breaking him (Maxim 4). Minimizing the 9-2’s impact will slow the British attack (Maxim 3).

One last thing to consider for the German; the positioning of the Sniper counter. The German SAN is a four. Since the British are likely going to rush forward with everything they have, the 9-2 is likely to be left far in the rear, over-watching the attack as part of a kill stack. While clipping the 9-2 will be down to pure random chance, proper placement of your Sniper counter can almost ensure the 9-2’s stack is selected on a SAN activation. Clipping the 9-2 and putting a 2MC on the other units as a LLMC can have a huge impact on this scenario.

The Counterattack

If the German cannot hold the village—or if the British take it after turn 6, the Germans will have to counter attack back into the village to take it back (Maxim 1). Part of the reason for placing it at the rear of the village is to make it more accessible for the counterattack (Maxim 2). The German Infantry supported by the Stug IIIB should be a solid counter-attacking force. The Tigers are also a great supporting option (Maxim 4). If the German already has 15 VP, taking this 15 VP back will ease the exit requirement.

The German should have a good idea of how much he needs to exit to win (Maxim 1) by now. A worst-case scenario is 40 VP, which assumes no other VPs earned to this point, the best-case is 10 VP. The German needs to plan to achieve this. In planning, the German needs a plan for dealing with the 57L and other AT assets arrayed against his exit (Maxims 1/4).

It is hard to predict here, but the Germans have 49 VP of AFVs which can exit (Maxim 1). It is possible to forgo any part of the village, keeping in mind the need to exit  40 EVP with no possible CVP points. With 92 points of total EVP in their OB, playing to exit is possible. It will take some work, but it is possible.

Conclusion

This is my take on the German side. It covers my initial deployment and plan. As usual, I would reformulate and refactor my plan on the fly as the situation changes. I hope you enjoyed this article and find it helpful in some small way. Until next time. — jim

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