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Bocage Hell

Posted: Sat Feb 20, 2016 2:44 am
by sPzAbt653
The Normandy Campaign at 1km, available for playtest if anyone is interested. I've run it thru a bunch of times and everything seems to work as intended. Although, I've changed the Victory Conditions every time I've played it, so we'll see if they need to be further modified. E-mail me or give me your e-mail and I'll send the zip file. 1.5mb so make sure your e-mail can handle that.

Edit: Now Available at:
tm.asp?m=4384926&mpage=1&key=&#4384926

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RE: Bocage Hell

Posted: Sat Feb 20, 2016 2:47 am
by sPzAbt653
The scenario begins on the morning of June 7th, the day after the landings.

British 6th AB Div and elements of the Special Service Force hold the bridgehead east of the Orne while the British 3rd Infantry Div advances toward Caen.

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RE: Bocage Hell

Posted: Sat Feb 20, 2016 2:48 am
by sPzAbt653
British 50th and Canadian 3rd Infantry Div's advance on Caen from the northwest.

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RE: Bocage Hell

Posted: Sat Feb 20, 2016 2:50 am
by sPzAbt653
The morning after at Bloody Omaha. The US 29th and 1st Infantry Div's have overcome the stiff resistance and are ready to move inland.

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RE: Bocage Hell

Posted: Sat Feb 20, 2016 2:53 am
by sPzAbt653
Utah Beach. With the help of the US 82nd and 101st AB Div's, the US 4th Infantry Div has made a large penetration, but is still hemmed in by the swamps and rivers.

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RE: Bocage Hell

Posted: Sat Feb 20, 2016 2:54 am
by sPzAbt653
The Garrison at Cherbourg.

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RE: Bocage Hell

Posted: Sat Feb 20, 2016 6:40 am
by Crossroads
Looks like a top scenario! Looking forward to play the finished article [:)]

RE: Bocage Hell

Posted: Sat Feb 20, 2016 2:02 pm
by Meyer1
Very interesting. Is there any PO to play against?

RE: Bocage Hell

Posted: Sat Feb 20, 2016 4:20 pm
by sPzAbt653
There is a PO for both sides.

RE: Bocage Hell

Posted: Sun Feb 21, 2016 11:31 am
by Rokossovskiy
Bocage does not start until 20-25km from beach except Utah.

RE: Bocage Hell

Posted: Sun Feb 21, 2016 11:46 am
by sPzAbt653
Well, that sucks. [:(]

What should I call all this stuff behind Omaha ?

Can I send you the file and you can advise as to what should be changed ?

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RE: Bocage Hell

Posted: Sun Feb 21, 2016 12:34 pm
by Rokossovskiy
That is called fields. Do not look at 2014 Google satellite and think this is accurate for 1944 or at all. Bocage cannot be defined from space. Bocage was several kilometers south of Bayeux. This terrain was not at the beach except Utah. I am not allowed to post links but take off dashes and replace with dot for map of bocage area 1944: eo-wikipedia-org/wiki/Dosiero:Bocagenormandy-jpg

RE: Bocage Hell

Posted: Sun Feb 21, 2016 6:26 pm
by sPzAbt653
Here is the image in the link that you provided:

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RE: Bocage Hell

Posted: Sun Feb 21, 2016 6:45 pm
by sPzAbt653
I certainly used the shot in the above post as a reference, but also used several other resources. I understand the differences between satellite photos and 1944-2015, but I came to understand that there is a defined difference between 'fields surrounded by tree lines' and 'fields surrounded by hedgerows', the latter being 'bocage'.

In TOAW we have the choice of Bocage/Hedgerow or Cropland. The area north and southeast of Caen would be TOAW Cropland. Some areas of the scenario's map would fall into a middle category, that of fields surrounded by tree lines but not surrounded by hedgerows. They would be more influential than Cropland, so that is why they appear as Bocage in the scenario. If there is a more definitive source on the area I'll gladly change the map, but according to the Historical Division of the War Department [USA] report on the Omaha Beachhead [ http://www.history.army.mil/books/wwii/ ... 100-11.HTM ] American troops began 'hedgerow fighting' as soon as they left the bluffs above Omaha Beach. The book also contains several photos from either 1944 or 1945 of the area in question, and looking at those I would rather use Bocage than Cropland in a TOAW map of the area.

And for additional fun I looked at several games and scenarios that deal with the subject area, and not one starts the bocage so far from Omaha as you are recommending. So, the input is appreciated but so far I am not convinced enough to make a change.

RE: Bocage Hell

Posted: Sun Feb 21, 2016 7:01 pm
by Rokossovskiy
Yes bocage did not start for some way. Hard enough for allies without making them fight bocage right off beaches. [;)]

Old SPI/Decisive Games boardgame called Atlantic Wall had a good map. John Tiller with Normandy44 also is good. JT does military contract simulations so I would trust him most for accuracy. Lots of Normandy44 people around. Probably ask at Blitz game club in Tiller Operations forum for screenshot of max zoomed out screen shot with town names. Good guys there who like to help. I have Battles of Normandy from JT. Longest Day scen goes in land into bocage but Normandy44 will help more. You might even like to buy that game. 250 meter hexes tactical 30 minutes turn.

Soldiers to go to Normandy trained in England hedgerows and these are not like bocage. There is hedgerow in many places but bocage is hedgerow on steroids. SPI, Decisive games, JTS all start BOCAGE in a historical manner. Hedgerow and bocage are not the same thing. But your scenario do what you want but to punish allies with BOCAGE immediately off beach is ahistorical.

RE: Bocage Hell

Posted: Sun Feb 21, 2016 8:37 pm
by sPzAbt653
but to punish allies with BOCAGE immediately off beach is ahistorical.

A point I left out earlier as I was getting long winded anyway, but this starts on the 7th and by the disposition of forces there is no fighting in the area of controversy. Doesn't mean its correct, its the combination of factors that add up to 55/45 in favor of the way it is. For now.

Thanks again.

RE: Bocage Hell

Posted: Sun Feb 21, 2016 8:37 pm
by budd
dont know if this will help here's a link to tillers map used for panzer battles Normandy. Its like 190megs in size.

http://www.johntillersoftware.com/Panze ... %20Map.png

RE: Bocage Hell

Posted: Sun Feb 21, 2016 9:09 pm
by Rokossovskiy
Here is the guy who designed Atlantic Wall: boardgamegeek-com/boardgamedesigner/673/joseph-m-balkoski (again dashes are dot except joseph-m-balkoski)

Here is the guy who team did Normandy44 and Battles of Normandy: johntillersoftware-com/Military-html

These games put bocage historically. Not hedgerow, not minor or small bocage (there really is this) but bocage. Maybe these guys did not have enough resource and got it wrong. Thanks for listening. [&o]

RE: Bocage Hell

Posted: Tue Feb 23, 2016 9:09 am
by JapLance
hmmmm, 1km scale, those graphics for fortified hexes... an old game series came to my mind immediately: World at War. Is this a port of the WaW game D-Day America Invades including also the British beaches?


RE: Bocage Hell

Posted: Tue Feb 23, 2016 11:51 am
by sPzAbt653
BINGO !!

Hey JapLance, long time no see !

I was playing the separate games from Avalon Hill/V4V a while back and had the thought that we could combine them using TOAW. Combined them, stole the bunker graphics, expanded it, did lots of current research, took some ideas from James Burns TOAW Classic Overlord 44 scenario, and voila - Bocage Hell !