Welcome back to Firefight Fridays. Last week we got back onto talking about the scenarios with scenario #10, Panzer in the Pocket. This week we will be talking about the penultimate scenario “Best Laid Plans”. This one has has a small but interesting wrinkle to it that I will cover first, then a new unit type, and then we will get into the usual overview.

Surprising a Superior Force

For reasons we will cover with the historical component, the Germans start out on the backfoot in this scenario and then quickly become far stronger. The way that is modeled in “Best Laid Plans”, is that half of the dice on the timer do not get added to the Common Pool at the end of the turn, but rather get added to the German Private Reserve. This is especially noteworthy because the Germans start the scenario with only two dice in their Private Reserve. As a result, not only will the German player quickly have a superior number of options to the American player, they will also be able to utterly dominate the initiative struggle in later game turns.

Charging the Enemy

This scenario introduces a new support weapon in the form of Demolitions Teams. Demolition Teams have the unique action “Set Charge” which allows them to instantly destroy hard targets. To resolve this action you must announce that you are targeting either a vehicle in an adjacent zone, or the adjacent zone itself if the current terrain is a destructible structure. Following this, the other player may declare Opportunity Fire or Final Protective Fire against the Demolition Team, attempting to pin or eliminate it. Should that fail, the target is immediately destroyed. In the case of structures this resolves as though the zone was hit by artillery for all infantry present. Suffice to say they are very powerful, but require the unit to get in close with the target, despite no ability to adequately defend itself.

Try for Second Best

Operation Market Garden was an aggressive plan devised by British Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery to take a series of bridges over three canals/rivers in the German occupied Netherlands to create a thoroughfare for Allied forces to enter Germany. The operation would be the single largest deployment of paratroopers in military history. The first of these targets was the Wilhemina Canal near the city of Eindhoven. Flawed intelligence stated the area was only defended by a small number of “kids and old men”. Elements of the 101^st Airborne landed near the town of Best, on the other side of the Wilhelmina Cancel from Eindhoven, with instructions to secure the bridges there as a backup in case Allied forces failed to take the other bridges further down the canal. What they did not know is that in the two days prior to the operation, roughly 1,000 Germans had detrained in Best after returning from fighting in France.

Broadsided

 As mentioned “Best Laid Plans” is a scenario that is all about pacing (similar to last week’s Panzer in the Pocket, but now with asymmetrical pacing). The American objective here is to end a Game Turn with a Good Order unit on the bridge zone. Germans just want to prevent that (historically after they got their act together they just blew up the bridge). This is another two deck scenario, with the town of Best occupying the west side of the battle grid and farmland on the east side. The Americans land on the east side, to the north of a bit of forest and then have to assault the town. The beginning of the scenario will be the most important for both sides, as the Americans need to make the most of their early advantage due to surprise, and the Germans need to limit their successes so the momentum doesn’t carry the Americans to victory when the Germans seize the initiative (literally and figuratively).

A Minor Intelligence Error

The Americans have a lot to contend with in this scenario. Firstly, they are tremendously outgunned. The Germans have Panzers, Pak 40s, and artillery support. The Americans have superior sight lines to the town and early momentum. The first and most important decision for the American player is how to assault Best. The two main options are to attack the town in earnest, clearing the rural land between the town and the landing zone, and then work south through the town to secure the bridge. This is the safest way to go about things, but it is also the most time consuming, and time isn’t something the Americans have to play around with here. The alternative is to try to skip the town altogether and work through the extended rural terrain directly to the bridge. This is obviously the fastest approach but it is also incredibly risky. The optimal strategy will be some mixture of the two, capitalizing on wherever the enemy’s plans fall through. As stated before, this is another scenario that rewards aggression. You don’t have time to advance slowly, building off of minor victories. Make the most of the element of surprise, and force your opponent into a mistake to win as early as you can.

R&R Interrupted

The Germans have everything they could ever want in this scenario. Their armor can run roughshod through the Americans in the fields, they have all manner of ways of pinning them down and can then clean them up with artillery fire. The frustrating part is that coordinating all these pieces into a coherent defense will be next to impossible in the beginning. As usual for defenders, setup will be very important here. Early on your units will not have the luxury of moving into better positions to counter the enemy. Try to set up aggressively (you have the units to spare) such that your forces can cover multiple approaches to Best and the bridge. Also, while it is usually a good idea to hold onto Opportunity Fire until you really need it, here it is absolutely crucial. Firing at a couple of feints from the Americans crossing the rural country will give them free reign to get over the dangerous terrain before you have the ability to respond. Once you have parity with the Americans you can start to play a bit more proactively. Remember that the objective is a bridge that neither of you can safely occupy. Do what you can to cover the approach and you will be fine.

The Finale

Next week we will cover the final scenario in the core box “Crossing the River Styx”. This is “the big one” so we will have plenty to talk about. See you then!

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