Black and white picture. Murky and faded. In the background, a Pz VI Tiger tips precariously backwards into a flooded ditch. Its 88m canon points ineffectively skyward while troops of a Panzer grenadier unit either wade in water with chunks of floating ice or simply mill about, stalled, exposed, some at rest. Gaunt faces stare from beneath hoods into the camera as a tanker, directly in the foreground, turns away in the instant a fellow crewman takes the photo of their sinking leviathan during Operation Spring Awakening.
Tank Duel’s historical scenario, Hungary for Oil, represents a mud-soaked reality check for German players during “Operation Spring Awakening” (Fruhlingserwachen) and a post-Order No. 235 shift of command choices for Russian combatants. It’s a roiling slog of iconic tanks from German Tigers and Panthers to T34/76s and Soviet SU-100 assault guns. In March of 1945, the attempt to secure Hungarian oil reserves was a delusional squandering by the German high command of nearly 500 tanks (including 249 Panthers and 72 Tigers) plus assault guns. This underscores tactical choices tempered by the inherent gamble in the shuffle and play of the 100 card Tank Duel Battle Deck. The glory days of vast envelopments of Soviet armies by German Panzers during Operation Barbarossa of 1941 have dramatically narrowed in 1945 to the securing of one bridge over the Sio Canal.
Route Canal or From the Jaws of Defeat
Determined to stabilize what remained of a collapsing Eastern Front, Inspector General of Armored Troops Heinz Guderian would not have committed even one of the few remaining operational tanks had he not been overruled. After the ill-fated Ardennes campaign, the German player may find himself commanding in the melting snow and the driving rain in a vain attempt to secure Hungarian oil fields. Ahead for every German player in Hungary for Oil lies not only nearly impassable terrain, but Russian anti-tank positions in depth along with a seemingly inexhaustible supply of replacement Soviet tankers seasoned by years of engagements. Occupying the Sio Canal bridgehead with two German tanks is the ideal option for a German Automatic Victory. For the Russian player, it’s a matter of methodically taking advantage of Soviet tank design and mobility to create a battlefield littered with smoldering German Panthers and Tigers. The Russian player must defend the Russian anti-tank and infantry positions at the center of the battlefield to prevent a German dash to the canal. The player must also have an endless flow of FIRE cards and execute them strategically in order to achieve a superior kill ratio to German casualties and score 5 additional Victory Points for each tank.
To Road or Not to Road
Hungary for Oil begins with debilitating, deep mud ominously placed in the middle of the table (to remain there for at least two complete Battle Decks). Any dash to the Sio Canal 1800m away from the German starting positions will prove near impossible. The mud (per the directions of the Deep Mud Scenario Card (DMSC)) slows German armor by 4 movement points. Thus MOVE cards with greater than 3 movement factors and FLANK cards are rendered useless, clogging the player’s hand like mud in an iron tread.
Factoring in the Deep Mud Scenario Card (DMSC), any game of Hungary for Oil begins with a tactical decision: how many Order Icons to spend on Road Scenario Cards (RSC) (2 Order Icons/card). The decision is complicated by limited supply, one less than the number of tanks commanded by both players, up to a maximum of 7 RSCs. One RSC nullifies the limiting effects of the DMSC card looming in the middle of the table by restoring movement, as long as tanks approach as a column with a “lead tank” on point. Having at least two RSCs restores enough maneuverability to allow players to play FLANK cards (tankers taking side roads with heightened reconnaissance to out maneuver an opponent).
With one RSC, speed of advance is restored but only as a convoy depending on the survival of the lead tank; an immobilized tank becomes a blockage that nullifies the benefits of an RSC. Playing a Mud Card will temporarily cancel an opponent’s RSC benefits, along with making any tank an easier target for a kill shot. Without an RSC, the German player will only have access to 12 functional MOVE cards in the entire Battle Deck, while the Russians (with their superior mobility in the mud) may access a total of 18 MOVE cards. Delays are nearly inevitable and ultimately deadly.
Without at least one RSC, how long will even the most heavily armored Panther last? A German player may have to wait to acquire a MOVE card of 3 or lower while being bracketed by Russian 85mm ATs with a range of 800m or a 45mm M37 AT with a range of 400m. Within a kill zone of 400m, best traversed under Deep Mud conditions in two full turns, are two potential attempts by the Soviets for a killing shot with a T-34/76 held in reserve. A lack of sufficient Order Icons for the Russian player may be the German player’s only possible reprieve.
Into the Kill Zone of Soviet Order No. 325
As a Russian tank commander, your tactics may well be influenced by Order No. 325 issued at the behest of Joseph Stalin, a radical transformation of Soviet tank doctrine issued October 16th of 1942. One of a number of tactical improvements included more effective coordination of tankers with anti-tank units like those in Hungary for Oil, organized in depth in anticipation of the “secret” German armored offensive. More often than not, after Order No. 235, Russian tank units would prioritize overrunning German infantry positions rather than direct confrontations with German armor. It’s one possible strategic commitment among many in Hungary for Oil that will mean heightened cooperation by Russian players.
Another immediate call to action will necessitate Russian players calculating the trade-off inherent in the limited resources or Order Icons depicted on some Battle Deck cards. Order Icons gain crucial RSCs in the opening rounds of Hungary for Oil but are also used to activate and fire anti-tank guns. Russian players may decide to prioritize Order Icons over RSCs in order to activate their lines of anti-tank guns and transform the middle of the battlefield into a proverbial killing ground for the slowly advancing, vulnerable German armor. Order No. 325 asserted that Russian tanks would be best deployed to protect the lines of anti-tank guns vulnerable to German destruction. In later Battle Decks, Russian players may gamble on their mobility which allows access to a larger pool of MOVE cards, including all with 4 factors should Deep Mud Scenario Card (DMSC) conditions persist. Since the Germans must advance, Soviet fire power is waiting to destroy the lead tank advancing along every road held by the German players. There is a gamble built into every pull of the Battle Deck.
Seasoned Russians and Green Germans
A subtle but perhaps more pervasive shift in Hungary for Oil is the relative level of experience of the German and Russian tank crews, reflected in the number of cards held by each player. In the final stages of the Eastern Front’s surge toward Berlin, seasoned Russian tank crews were more likely to survive because of their experience in confrontations with German tank crews. By contrast, elite German crews, particularly those sent to multiple fronts, east and west and then back east, were dwindling under the weight of attrition. Paradoxically, even as the brand new Tiger IIs were making their way onto the battlefield, the green crews manning these behemoths were thrown into the fray with little preparation (thus fewer cards in the German hand). Fewer cards often means fewer strategic choices and limited options for survival (let alone offensive prowess), no matter the machine.
The Challenge
From the outset, when players sit down to a game of Tank Duel either as German or Russian, they will be tested to wield the potential might of a number of iconic tanks under a variety of battlefield conditions. It’s an intricate test of mechanical design and finesse of play. By contrast, Hungary for Oil was never designed as a balanced historical scenario. The very nature of a historical scenario means an unyielding, often brutal confrontation with the reality of past events. From the Deep Mud Scenario Card (DMSC) to the kill zone of Russian anti-tank guns, Hungary for Oil sets out an immediate challenge, resulting not so much in the vindication of a win but in the euphoria of survival.
James Vitti
Author: James Vitti
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